Re: MEPBM: agent strategy

From: jaede@acsu.buffalo.edu

Date: Thu, 09 Jan 1997 00:00:00 +0000

On 8 Jan 1997, Leo DiBenigno wrote:

>
> Thanks again for everyone's help.  Can anyone discuss the best way
> to enter a pop center, refuse all PC's, steal/sabotage/kill, etc.
> and move on with as little risk as possible.

All of this depends greatly on the time in the game, the skill of your
agents, the resources of the target nation, and the exact pop center
targeted.

The ideal situation is where you have 3 killer agents (net 100+) and three
good guards for them and a high-challenge commander all in a company
together, you scout for characters and recon going in, the agents all
refuse and assassinate/steal/guard, and the commander moves them all out
in the same turn.

Late in the game, moving against a powerful enemy capital or a hex with
many enemy armies, you may actually have the resources to do this and find
it necessary to expend them this way.  Most of the time it just won't be
possible and you will have to make some compromises.

If your agents are only fair (net 50-70), limit them to thefts of gold or
artifacts.  If you can't spare a scout, choose target hexes which
are unlikely to have characters in them.  If you can't get a company
together, either risk the challenge at a probably-character-free hex or
follow a sequence of move in, refuse/steal, refuse/move out.

It's really the safe target hex which is the key.  Choose a Gondorian town
or one of the Corsairs' more out-of-the-way major towns.  Or if you are
Free, steal from DS mountain camps.  You won't get a lot of gold, but you
will get training.

>
> Exact order sequence would be appreciated as I'm relatively new
> to this.
>

You may just need to re-read the manual.  Remember that orders are
executed in code number order, so the sequence for the orders discussed
here is Challenges/Refusals, Agent actions, Movement, Scouts/Recons.  It
doesn't matter which order you write first on your turnsheet; the computer
sorts it out.

Generally, the sequence is:

Turn A: Move in and scout or recon.

Turn B: Agent action and move out (non-company agent)

-or-

Agent action and refuse (agent)
        Refuse and move company out (company commander)

Note that the same agent cannot scout for characters and do another agent
skill order in the same turn, so this sequence cannot be followed while
moving directly from one target to another unless you have a dedicated
scout agent in a company.

Good luck,

Mark

References

Re: MEPBM: agent strategy
jaede@acsu.buffalo.edu
Fri, 27 Dec 1996 00:00:00 +0000
Re: MEPBM: agent strategy
ggiacoppe@aol.com (GGiacoppe)
Tue, 07 Jan 1997 00:00:00 +0000