Art of War (new Sim mod)

Tenuki

Hello everyone,

I'd like to announce a new re-balancing mod!

This mod is designed for multiplayer. Although it does work in single player, I would not recommend it.

You can play this mod with general FAF knowledge, but it would contribute greatly to your satisfaction (and success) if you would read following information carefully. Most of the changes are not obvious while in-game and will likely confuse you if you will not expect them.

What is changed:

Losing units (mobile & structures) is very costly. All future units of same type will be exponentially more expensive and will take increasingly longer time to build.
Reloading for all units now consumes energy. No energy = no reloading = no damage (except first shot). Also ACU is notable exception and can fight having 0 energy economy.
Regen is much stronger for all units and is available even for newly built units. It is even stronger for higher level units.
Building too many of same type units is slow (inefficient). Diverse groups are faster and cheaper to build.
Engineers are very squishy and require strong protection.
Tanks are slower and have very poor vision.
Energy and Mass stored generate extra mass and energy income. It's like a bank: your stored assets generate additional value for you.
Radars are much more expensive and take longer to build, but they also have stronger sensors.
Structures are cheaper to build.

How the changes affect your strategy:

Pay attention to your units. Retreat on time to heal. Raid enemy weak points to make enemy's future units more expensive. Maintain favorable kill-to-death ratio.
Make sure you have enough energy before major attacks. Big forces with energy issues can lose to smaller forces with strong economy.
Exploit strong regen. Retreat for difficult battles and let units recover between fights. Losing units is very costly while regen is free.
Embrace diversity. Although spam (T1) is still somewhat possible, it will be much easier to win if you focus on raiding, strategic attacks and retreats.
Focus on raiding enemy units that are a must-have so that enemy will be forced to pay premium to rebuild them: Engineers, MEX'es, PGens and Radars especially. Remember, each kill will make same type units more expensive for the enemy.
Tanks are great for defense, where you have excellent vision. They can be used in attacks too, but only if properly supported. Avoid sending solo tanks into enemy territory if possible.
Because stored Mass and Energy generates you extra income resources - you are no longer pressured to spend it ASAP. In most cases you still want to use resources, but now - you can take time to strategically think about available options can battle situation.
Because radars are stronger, you need fewer of the them to have a good vision. But lower quantities can make you vulnerable too. Taking out lonely radar before major attack can be game winning.
Expand your map influence with both: mobile units And structures. Create fire-bases. Defend MEX'es and remote outposts. At the same time, explore enemy positions and strategically attack the enemy where forces are weak while avoiding stronger fortifications.
Think, think, think. This mod encourages smart moves and will likely punish recklessness.

Important unintentional quirk:
Because death of a unit changes it's blueprint - the death will affect negatively all players of the same faction. I would encourage avoid using same factions unless you know what you are doing.

I would appreciate if you would find time to test this mod and give feedback here, preferably with replay numbers so that I could watch your game.

Thank you and Have fun!
Tenuki.