Comment on game difficulty.

Just to leave also my opinion here, I like strategy games (I love Advance Wars), and I'm bad at them (well, it's better to admit it...).

There are several missions in the campaign that I really don't know how to beat without lowering the difficulty. I understand that the game is difficult for completely newbies -but you literally set the an adequate difficulty for you, no matter what. Okay, you don't get a lot of stars then, but after you finish the campaing, you should try again some missions, do some arcade play and a pair of puzzles and try again. I'm sure you get better as you play and you get increase your star rating in a second try.

However, I agree with you in two points: one, some maps are too long. Faster movement for units should make it better, but when you lose after an hour is tiring, I have to admit it. Second, you should be able to still get rank A or B (two stars at least!!) if you only lower the difficulty a bit. I mean, your max rank should depend on how easy you put it. If I increase the groove, income and strength to maximum probably I do not deserve even one star xD But if I simply increase a bit my income, maybe I still deserve getting a pair of stars.

But, in general, I like the overall concept design, enjoyed the challenging difficulty, and appreciated the possibility to ridiscously overpower me when I was sure I was not able to beat the map.

 

I'm stuck on Level 3-3... i'm still unsure if the fault is with the Difficulty of the Map or if i'm just a moron...

Even then, i'm still unsure if this Incoming Patch will solve a inherent problem in the game, or if i'm just getting Mollycoddled...

 

As an Advance Wars veteran, my opinion of the difficulty is probably highly skewed. With having done maps like Crystal Calamity, Waylon Flies Again, Rivals, etc. Wargroove feels downright forgiving by contrast. I'm not saying that it's easy by any stretch of the imagination, nor that AW should be a measure -- I'm of the mind AW's campaign designs fell on the wrong side of trial and error and just flat out jank. For example I'd say "Settling the Score" is basically a more fun version of Waylon Flies Again. (i.e. a test of how well you can maintain a battle line without nearby unit-building structures)

For those struggling with difficulty, here's three rules of thumb that are pretty much always true --

1. If your units are doing more damage than they cost to make, you're coming out ahead. (there are occasions where you'll willingly do something inefficient in order to grab a strategic lead, but you do need to "buy" that leeway with efficient play beforehand)

2. Every turn, think very carefully which order you move your units. Figuring this out will create a night and day difference. Puzzle Mode is one of Wargroove's most brilliant additions because it naturally demonstrates how much this counts for.

3. I also almost always build new units at the end of my turn. That's because I'm better off spending money based on the state of the battlefield after the dust has settled. You won't know what you'll truly need soon until then anyway.

 

I S-Ranked all stuff in AW: DoR... though it took me literally a couple RL Years & some of the Maps took me a billion tries before I managed it... "Waylon Flies Again" mighta been one of them.

One thing about Map 3 - 3 i've noticed is that...

After a couple turns in the Map Harpy Spam shows up in the lower-left corner & forces need for Swoopers to combat them... but nothing warns ya in your first Playthrough this is gonna happen & how much attention one is gonna need to pay to Air Force. I'm honestly unsure if beating this Map without making Swoopers Turn 2 onwards before those Harpies even show up providing a Player's first actual in-game clue of need for Swoopers is even possible... & if not it feels kinda Guide Dang It...

Yet, I still can't be sure if my problem really is something like this happening, or just me being a RL dumbass... I'm prone to Super Dying Skills...

 

Days of Ruin, for any criticism you could give it, generally has a very fair campaign. It has some really tough missions and one monstrously swingy final mission (The Nest) but it's often hard to remember any individual level because there isn't nearly so much trial and error jank.

Waylon Flies Again lingers in memory because it was a very annoying map. Basically your guys have to cross a lot of distance to get to the enemy, there aren't really good defensible positions and the enemy is both entrenched and can reinforce quickly. They also don't have to go as far. That battle can take forever to win.

"Settling the Score" in Wargroove is sort of an equivalent to it, similar setup, but it's actually pretty straightforward to S-rank if you think outside the box a little.