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<strong>Commander, combat is the most important element of a successful military campaign in Conflict of Nations.</strong>  
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<h2>Combat at a Glance</h2>
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<div>
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Combat aims to establish total dominance over an opposing force. To succeed, you must hone your tactical awareness. As commander of an entire nation, you need a deep understanding of the intricate details of modern war. Study the mechanics of close-combat attack and defense, as well as how combat might play out in different scenarios. Victory goes to the prepared.
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<ol>
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  <li>Diligence - Anticipate diplomatic interference and counter attacks, as well as growing insurgent areas.
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  <li>Effective strategy - Think ahead and don't waste resources. Every decision counts, especially when you are investing real-time.
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  <li>Resources - Keep an eye on your resource production. Consider provinces and cities that you require for further Arms Industries construction. If new territory is hard to acquire on your own, ally with someone.
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  <li>Diplomacy - Diplomatic relations will make or break the game and must not be under-valued.
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</ol>
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</div>
  
==Combat at its Root==
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<h2>Combat In Detail</h2>
At its root, you should understand that combat aims to establish total dominance over an opposing force. This requires the following tactical awareness:
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<h3>Army Stacking Penalties</h3>
<br>1. Diligence: Anticipate diplomatic interference and counter attacks, as well as growing insurgent areas.
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<div>
<br>2. Effective strategy: Think ahead and don't waste all your resources, each decision counts especially when you are investing realtime.
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[[File:STACKING PENALTY.jpg|fig1 - Low efficiency stack|thumb|right|text-top|300px]]
<br>3. Resources: Arms industries are a must, consider provinces and cities that you require for further resource production, if they are out of reach, ally with someone.
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To simulate modern logistics and fire-and-maneuver doctrines, you will notice a strict stacking penalty for units. Expect to see diminishing returns, and even negative modifiers, in combat strength and movement speed as units are added to the army stack.
<br>4. Diplomacy: Diplomatic relations will make or break the game and should not be undervalued.
 
<br>
 
As commander of an entire nation, you need a deep understanding of the intricate details of modern war. You need to understand the mechanics of close combat attack and defence, as well as how combat might play out in different scenarios.
 
<br>
 
Victory goes to the prepared.
 
<br><br>
 
 
 
==The Tools of War==
 
=====Army Stacking Penalties=====
 
One of the most important changes to modern combat is in the relatively low number of combatants involved. No longer do one million men invade a foreign country, today’s invasions play by the factor of 10 or lower. To simulate modern logistics and fire and manoeuvre doctrines, you will notice a strict stacking penalty for units. Expect to see diminishing returns, and even negative modifiers, in combat strength, movement speed, and defensive capabilities.<br>
 
<div style="overflow: hidden"> [[File:Pasted image at 2017 11 29 03 41 PM.png|left|Low efficiency stack|300px|thumb]]</div>
 
 
 
While marked in yellow, the stacked units are just suffering diminishing returns… but once the indicator hits red prepare to suffer.<br>
 
[[File:Effiency box arrow high.png|High efficiency]]
 
[[File:Effiency box arrow mid.png|Medium efficiency]]
 
[[File:Effiency box arrow Low.png|Low efficiency]]
 
 
<br><br>
 
<br><br>
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<div class="img-block-center">
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[[File:Effiency box arrow high.png|link=|High efficiency]]
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[[File:Effiency box arrow mid.png|link=|Medium efficiency]]
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[[File:Effiency box arrow Low.png|link=|Low efficiency]]
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</div>
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<ul>
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<li> If marked yellow, the unit stack suffers from diminishing returns, i.e. every additional unit added to the stack makes it less effective.
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<li> If marked orange, every new unit added to the stack does not contribute additional strength.
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<li> If marked red, every new unit added to the stack weakens its overall strength.
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</ul>
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</div>
  
=====Missile Warfare=====
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<h3>Missile Warfare</h3>
Modern battlefields are extremely hostile due to the very high amount of damage concentrated in very small delivery systems such as Cruise Missiles. Conflict of Nations allows dedicated air, ground, and naval units to fire conventional, chemical, and nuclear cruise missiles at military targets, amongst others.
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<div>
Additionally, we simulate strategic use of ballistic and intercontinental missiles of varying size and payload.<br>
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<div class="img-inline-block-left" style="text-align: center;">
[[File:Missile ballistic chemical.png]]
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[[File:Missile cruise chemical.png|link=|60px]]
[[File:Missile ballistic conventional.png]]
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[[File:Missile cruise conventional.png|link=|60px]]
[[File:Missile ballistic nuclear.png]]
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[[File:Missile cruise nuclear.png||link=|60px]]
[[File:Missile cruise chemical.png]]
 
[[File:Missile cruise conventional.png]]
 
[[File:Missile cruise nuclear.png]]
 
[[File:Missile icbm nuclear.png]]
 
 
<br><br>
 
<br><br>
 
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[[File:Missile ballistic chemical.png|link=|60px]]
=====Tactical Terrain=====
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[[File:Missile ballistic conventional.png|link=|60px]]
In Conflict of Nations we have ensured that terrain plays a vital role in planning conquests. From the jungles of the Amazon to the icy wastes of Greenland, the terrain places specific demands on the men and machines in this game. Simply pull up the terrain mode in the lower right game corner and plan your optimal tactics.<br>
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[[File:Missile ballistic nuclear.png|link=|60px]]
[[File:Terrain 10.png]]
 
[[File:Terrain 12.png]]
 
[[File:Terrain 13.png]]
 
[[File:Terrain 14.png]]
 
[[File:Terrain 15.png]]
 
[[File:Terrain 16.png]]
 
[[File:Terrain 17.png]]
 
[[File:Terrain 18.png]]
 
 
<br><br>
 
<br><br>
 
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[[File:Missile icbm nuclear.png|link=|60px]]
=====Entrenching=====
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</div>
Cities and provincial map-points (indicated by the junction of all major roads) will provide a solid defensive bonus by entrenching all units located in the area. This is automatic and stops once the unit is ordered to move on.<br>
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Modern battlefields are extremely hostile due to the very high amount of damage concentrated in very small delivery systems, such as Cruise Missiles. In an effort to simulate the use of non-ballistic, tactical missiles on the modern battlefield, CON allows dedicated air, ground, and naval units to fire conventional, chemical, and nuclear cruise missiles at military targets.
[[File:Screen Shot 2017-12-07 at 14.03.55.png]]
 
 
<br><br>
 
<br><br>
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Note that only [[Units #Cruise Missile|cruise missiles]] are able to target and track units, while [[Units #Ballistic Missile|ballistic missiles]] and [[Units #ICBM|ICBMs]] can only target the centre-points of [[Provinces]].
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</div>
  
=====Retreating=====
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<h3>Terrain Modifiers</h3>
Should units ever start getting mauled badly; players can order them to retreat to a neighbouring friendly territory at a cost of hit points. Naval and Ground units are the only units able to use the retreat feature.  
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<div>
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Terrain places specific demands on the soldiers and machines in CON. A [[Units #Basic Unit Stats|unit's stats]] are directly affected by the [[Provinces #Terrain Types|type of terrain]] it is currently positioned on. Toggle the <b>Terrain Types</b> overlay from the [[User Interface #C - Settings & Info panel|Settings & Info Panel]] to aid your planning.
 
<br><br>
 
<br><br>
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The following [[Units #Basic Unit Stats|unit attributes]] are affected by terrain. You can view the modifiers for each unit through the [[User Interface #Unit Info Panel|Unit Info Panel]]:
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[[File:7fddf610cb1613bdc4ecc819148165f2.png|thumb|right|500px|link=]]
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<ul>
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<li> Attack - A unit will be influenced either positively or negatively by this percentage when in this terrain while on attack.
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<li> Defense - A unit will be influenced either positively or negatively by this percentage when in this terrain while in defensive actions.
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<li> Speed Value - A unit will be modified by this value as it travels through the defined environment.
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<li> Hit Points - a unit’s Hit Points will be modified depending upon terrain.
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<li> [[Field of View| Sight Range]] - The sight range at which your unit can be visually detected varies by terrain. This is different from radar range, and is shown on the map as the brightest view around your unit
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</ul>
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</div>
  
=====Unit Healing=====
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<h3>Entrenching</h3>
Building military hospitals will speed up the recovery time of units low on HP. Generally, ground units will recover a small amount of HP over the course of time when in friendly territory. Just as naval vessels repair over time when in shallow waters.
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<div>
<br><br>
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[[File:Screen Shot 2017-12-07 at 14.03.55.png|thumb|link=|right]]
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Placing a unit stack on a [[Provinces|provincial center-point]] will provide a defensive entrenchment bonus while it remains there. This is automatic and stops once the unit is ordered to move on. The entrenchment bonus can be increased through the construction of certain buildings.  
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</div>
  
=====Hardened Bunkers=====
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<h3>Unit Healing</h3>
Rather than creating an invincible fortress, today’s city defences are all about providing civil protection against weapons of mass destruction. The better equipped a city is, the more of its population will survive any serious attack. There is of course, some military value in hardened positions as well.
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<div>
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Ground and Air [[Units|units]] can heal in [[Provinces#Cities|cities]] which you control, as well as cities which you have access to, either through a coalition, through Shared Intelligence, or even through Right of Way. Note that units are not required to be at the centre of that city to heal, since being within the province borders is sufficient for recovery to take place. Also, air units will heal at the same rate as ships if they are on a carrier which is on coastal waters. (2 HP / Day)
 
<br><br>
 
<br><br>
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The base healing for cities is +1HP per day '''per unit''' 'and increased according to the level of the Military Hospital in that city:
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<ul>
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<li> A level 1 Military Hospital heals at a rate of +1HP per day
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<li>A level 2 Military Hospital heals at a rate of +2HP per day
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<li>A level 3 Military Hospital heals at a rate of +3HP per day
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<li>A level 4 Military Hospital heals at a rate of +4HP per day
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<li>A level 5 Military Hospital heals at a rate of +5HP per day
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</ul>
  
=====Crimes against Humanity=====
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The base healing for provinces is +0HP per day and increased according to the level of the Field Hospital in that province:
Units sent into enemy cities that are not yet conquered will start decimating the local population. This is considered a war crime and can have severe consequences with the morale of the player’s population – especially if large numbers of civilians suffer from this behavior.
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<ul>
<br><br>
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<li>A level 1 Field Hospital heals at a rate of +1HP per day
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<li>A level 2 Field Hospital heals at a rate of +2HP per day
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<li>A level 3 Field Hospital heals at a rate of +3HP per day
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</ul>
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<br>
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Naval units recover HP in  [[Provinces#Terrain_Types| coastal waters]]  at a rate of +2HP per day. Note that naval units need to be out of combat in order for HP recovery to take place.
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</div>
  
=====Chemical and Nuclear Warfare=====
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<h3>Retreating</h3>
Probably the strongest weapons ever invented, these are the ultimate killers – albeit with a double edge. The resulting loss of life, devastation and contamination wrought by one of these weapons of mass destruction will not go unchecked by other nations and of the perpetrator’s own population. In Conflict of Nations there is the real chance of the world turning into a contaminated wasteland, populated by unhappy survivors. We warned you…
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<div>
<br><br>
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You can order a unit that is engaged in combat to retreat to the nearest, friendly territory, at the cost of hit points. Only ground and naval [[Units|units]] can retreat.
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<ul>
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<li> Retreating units gain significant movement speed.
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<li> Even though retreating units bleed HP, they are incredibly hard to hit by hostile units.
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</ul>
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</div>
  
=====Insurgents=====
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<h3>Hardened Bunkers</h3>
Insurgents are a special unit that pop out in a city as a rebellion mechanism. They are trained former military who are not easy pushovers because they are fighting for something they truly believe in, even if the “good guys” disagree, making them formidable and dangerous enemies. Even though they don't physically march into the city, they should be considered an attacking unit and treated as in the scenario "Offensive/ Defensive Engagement"- where the Insurgents are the Offensive unit.
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<div>
<br><br>
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Bunkers shield your [[Provinces #Population|population]] against weapons of mass destruction. The higher the bunker level, the more of a city's population will survive a serious attack.
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<ul>
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<li> Bunkers can be constructed in [[Provinces #Cities|cities]] in order to shield the population from harm.
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<li> The amount of population shielded is twice the level of the bunker. E.g. a level 1 bunker shields a population of 2, a level 2 bunker shields a population of 4, and so on...
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<li> The shielded population takes no damage until the bunker is destroyed.
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</ul>
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</div>
  
=====Stealth Units=====
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<h3>Crimes Against Humanity</h3>
Stealthed units can have both meeting and offensive/defensive engagements, but on top of this, there is a First Strike / Ambush Bonus Damage.
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<div>
<br><br>
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In conflict zones, civilian casualties will often be inevitable. Certain units and weapons inflict more harm on local population than others. Be sure to check the [[User Interface #Unit Info Panel|Unit Info Panel]] to gauge how devastating the effects will be. If your actions indiscriminately cause civilian casualties during your conquest, there can be dire consequences:
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<ul>
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<li> Your national [[Provinces #Morale|morale]] will begin to suffer.
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<li> Weapons such as [[Units #Chemical Warhead|chemical warheads]] and [[Units #Nuclear Warhead|nuclear warheads]] may be highly effective at destroying soft and hard targets, but decimate local population in the process.
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<li> Your own nation's [[Provinces #Morale|morale]] will recover very slowly over time after committing such crimes.
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</ul>
  
==Game Mechanics==
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Units sent into enemy cities that are not yet conquered will start decimating the local population. This is considered a war crime and can have severe consequences with the morale of the player’s population – especially if large numbers of civilians suffer from this behavior.  
=====Declaring War through the Diplomatic Panel=====
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</div>
To declare war, click the ''''Diplomacy'''' button and select the target player. Then, from the drop-down menu, change your status from ''''Peace'''' to ''''War''''. You could even be diplomatic about the process and send a note stating your justifications for doing so, but many commanders won’t be so obliging.  
 
<div style="overflow: hidden">[[File:Combat 1.png|thumb|left|upright=1.5|The Diplomacy Screen where YOU choose your target and relationships]]</div>
 
<br><br>
 
  
=====Declaring War Through Invasion=====
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<h3>Chemical and Nuclear Warfare</h3>
Most attacks happen by default when your army meets the enemy at a border, or when you enter the province or city of an enemy country.
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<div>
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Probably the strongest weapons ever invented, these are the ultimate killers – albeit with a double edge. Any units caught in the cross-fire will be damaged, including your own units! Be warned, this may cause unintended wars or casualties as a result.
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The resulting loss of life, devastation and contamination wrought by one of these weapons of mass destruction will not go unchecked by other nations and of the perpetrator’s own population. In Conflict of Nations there is the real chance of the world turning into a contaminated wasteland, populated by unhappy survivors. We warned you…
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</div>
  
[[File:Combat 2.png|200px|thumb|left|War Warning]] '''Note:''' If you wish to avoid a war status with a country, it is important to remember that you will need either a Right of Way or a Military Pact, and/or for the Security Council Shared Intel. If you do not have either one of these statuses then you will be seen as aggressive and effectively declare war on the opposed country.  
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<h3>Stealth Units</h3>
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<div>
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Stealth units can have both meeting and offensive/defensive engagements, and can infiltrate another nation's territory without triggering war. See the [[Field of View #Stealth|Stealth]] section for more info.
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</div>
  
To warn you that you do not have the right to move your army through other lands, you will get a pop-up warning
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<h3>Anti-Air vs Missiles/Aircraft</h3>
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<div>
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When you launch missiles against a target, we distinguish between two cases:
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<ul>
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<li> [[#Point Defense|Point Defense]]
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<li> [[#AA Envelope|AA Envelope]]
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</ul>
  
If you do want to attack the other player, ignore the pop-up, and move your units to a location. Fighting will commence.
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<h4>Point Defense</h4>
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<div>
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[[File: AA point defence.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Missile directly attacking a unit stack that contains an AA unit]]
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If the stack that your missile is attacking is/contains an anti-air unit, the combat tick is calculated as <b>Point Defense</b>. This means that the anti-air unit will defend itself every time against incoming missiles or aircraft, i.e. there is no cool-down.
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<br><br>
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For example:
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<br>
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You fire two missiles against an anti-air unit. It does not matter whether you fired your missiles one second or one hour apart, anti-air will defend against them every time.
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</div>
  
If, while on your travels outside your homeland, you meet hostile forces, your troops will fight the hostile army. If your forces win, the remaining troops will continue to the original destination.
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<h4>AA Envelope</h4>
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<div>
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[[File: AA Envelope.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Missile attacking a unit that is standing within friendly AA Envelope]]
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If the stack that your missile is attacking is a unit that is standing within anti-air range, but is not part of the same stack, the combat tick is calculated as <b>AA Envelope</b>. This means that the anti-air unit will go on cool-down before it can defend a close-by unit again.
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<br><br>
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For example:
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<br>
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You quickly fire two missile against an infantry unit that is standing within an anti-air unit's envelope that is standing close by. You fire another missile directly at the anti-air unit as well:
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<ol>
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<li> The first missile, aimed at the infantry unit, is shot down by the anti-air unit.  
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<li> The second missile, however, lands a hit on the infantry unit since the anti-air unit's envelope is on cool-down.
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<li> The third missile, directly aimed at the anti-air unit, is shot down since it is calculated as Point Defense.
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</ol>
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</div>
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</div>
  
'''Note:''' It is entirely possible that other players have chosen the same enemy target as you (I know great minds think alike). So if another player captures a province before you, '''YOUR''' units will continue their advancement and attack the city, and so declare an undeclared war on the other player (if you were not at war).
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<h2>Acts of War</h2>
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<h3>Declaring War through the Diplomatic Panel</h3>
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<div>
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[[File:Combat 1.png|thumb|right|400px||The Diplomacy Screen from where you set your status towards a nation]]
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To declare war, click the ''Diplomacy'' button and select the target player. Then, from the drop-down menu, change your status from ''Peace'' to ''War''. You could even be diplomatic about the process and send a note stating your justifications for doing so, but most commanders won’t be so kind.
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</div>
  
To avoid this I recommend you do not attack the city itself with your original orders. Instead target the enemy garrison within the city. To do this simply select the army in the city as your primary objective and if these units are hidden with a “?” then target the flag that flies over the city.
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<h3>Declaring War through Invasion</h3>
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<div>
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[[File: Combat declare war.jpg|400px|thumb|right|Popup - You are about to declare war]]
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You declare war by default, when you trespass on the province of a nation with which you do not share a special diplomatic relationship. You will receive a pop-up warning whenever your move order would constitute an act of war.
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<br><br>
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If you want to move units through another nation's territory, you both must be members of the same [[Coalition|coalition]], or your diplomatic relation with that country needs to be one of the following:
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<ul>
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  <li class="li_con">[[Diplomatic Status #Right of Way|Right of Way]]
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  <li class="li_con">[[Diplomatic Status #Shared Intelligence|Shared Intelligence]]
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</ul>
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</div>
  
'''Note:''' Choose your targets carefully. If you declare war on a lot of nations simultaneously, your homeland country and people will suffer.
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<h2>Changes to Population Morale</h2>
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<div>
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[[File: Moraleinfo.png|400px|thumb|right|Morale Info]]
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When you declare war, it affects your nation as a whole. This war penalty affects all your provinces' [[Provinces #Morale|morale]], which slows down resource production as well as troop mobilization. You receive a penalty for every country you are at war with.
 
<br><br>
 
<br><br>
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To see your war penalty, select one of your provinces, and click the <b>i</b> button beside the <b>Morale</b> indicator in the [[User Interface #E - Army bar/Province bar|province bar]]. This will also show you what else affects [[Provinces #Morale|morale]] in the selected province.
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</div>
  
==Changes to Population Morale==
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<h2>Combat Mechanics</h2>
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<div>
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When two armies are engaged, combat rounds are calculated every hour. We differentiate between four possible scenarios:
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<ol>
 +
  <li>Meeting engagements
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  <li>Attack/Defense engagements
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  <li>Edge cases
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  <li>Cases where two armies are in movement
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</ol>
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</div>
  
'''War Affects Morale'''
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<h3>Meeting Engagement</h3>
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<div>
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[[File:OUTSIDE PROVINCE.jpg|thumb|400px|right|Army A and B engaged in combat, outside the province's center-point]]
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Scenario: Army <b>A</b> attacks army <b>B</b> in the open - where army <b>B</b> is stationed outside of the [[Provinces|province's center-point]].
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<br><br>
 +
First Combat Tick (immediately):
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<ul>
 +
<li> Army <b>A</b> attacks army <b>B</b> using its offensive stats
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<li> Army <b>B</b> defends against army <b>A</b> using its defensive stats
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<li> Army <b>B</b> counter-attacks army <b>A</b> using its offensive stats 
 +
<li> Army <b>A</b> defends against army <b>B</b> using its defensive stats
 +
</ul>
  
[[File:Combat 3.png|200px|thumb|left|Province Morale and Warning]] When you declare war, it does not just affect your troops it affects your nation as a whole. This War Penalty affects your Homeland civilian morale which can affect your production as well as your troop morale. This penalty is a subtracted 5% to your population’s morale for every country you are at war with.
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Second Combat Tick (after 1 hour has passed):
 +
<ul>
 +
<li> Army <b>A</b> attacks Army <b>B</b> using its offensive stats
 +
<li> Army <b>B</b> defends against Army <b>A</b> using its defensive stats
 +
<li> Army <b>B</b> counter-attacks Army <b>A</b> using its offensive stats
 +
<li> Army <b>A</b> defends against Army <b>B</b> using its defensive stats
 +
<li> and so on...
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</ul>
 +
</div>
  
To find your war penalty click on one of your territories and press the "i" button beside "Morale" in the province pop up (local Population Morale) This will also show you what else affects morale in a province including distance to capital, energy shortages and neighbouring province morale.[[File:Combat 4.png|200px|thumb|right|Province Morale Peanlty info]]
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<h3>Attack/Defense Engagement</h3>
 
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<div>
'''Battle Stats and Report Generation'''
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[[File:INSIDE CITY CENT.jpg|thumb|400px|right|Army B on province's center-point, defending against army A]]
 
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Scenario: Army <b>A</b> attacks army <b>B</b> - where <b>B</b> is stationed on the [[Provinces|province's center-point]].
In Conflict of Nations, battle results are updated every hour (unless you are attacking a province with no units- that should be an instant win). You can find these results ingame in the CoN News:
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<br><br>
 
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<span class="emphasis">When army <b>B</b> is [[#Entrenching|entrenched]] on a [[Provinces|province's center-point]], it is not performing offensive actions. Only army <b>A</b> conducts attack rounds, while army <b>B</b> is just defending.</span>
                                          [[File:Combat 5.png]]
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<br><br>
 
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First Combat Tick in chronological order - first exchange between the two armies, happens immediately:
=Game Mechanics:=
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<ul>
 
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<li> Army <b>A</b> attacks army <b>B</b> using its offensive stats
==How Core Combat is designed to work In game:==
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<li> Army <b>B</b> defends against army <b>A</b> using its defensive stats
 
+
</ul>
Generally, combat rounds take place every hour. We differentiate between four possible scenarios:
 
 
 
1, Meeting Engagements.
 
 
 
2. Attack/Defence Engagements.
 
 
3. Edge Cases.
 
 
 
Cases Where Two Armies are in Movement. There is mention in this section of Insurgents and Stealth Units, before getting into the actual Mechanics of a Single Close Combat Attack Round.
 
 
 
In every combat round, both armies conduct an attack round on each other, so basically the damages dealt are '''DOUBLE''' that of city combat (effectively combat is 2x faster).
 
 
 
Also important to note, is that strongly defensive units will suffer more if caught in the open.
 
 
 
'''1. Meeting Engagement'''
 
 
 
Army “A” attacks Army “B” in the open - where Army “B” is stationed outside of a map point
 
 
 
                                        [[File:Combat 6.png]]
 
 
 
First Combat Tick (immediately);
 
  • Army “A” attacks Army “B” using its offense (Strength) stats
 
  • Army “B” defends against Army “A” using its Defence stats
 
  • Army “B” counter-attacks Army “A” using its offense (Strength) stats 
 
  • Army “A” defends against Army “B” using its Defence stats
 
 
 
Second Combat Tick (after 1 hour has passed);
 
  • Army “A” attacks Army B using its offense (Strength) stats
 
  • Army “B” defends against Army “A” using its Defence stats
 
  • Army “B” counter-attacks Army “A” using its offense (Strength) stats
 
  • Army “A” defends against Army “B” using its Defence stats
 
  • and so on...
 
 
 
'''2. Attack/Defence Engagement:'''
 
 
 
Army “A” attacks Army “B” - where “B” is stationed on a map point (aka city/town)
 
 
 
                                        [[File:Combat 7.png]]
 
 
 
When Army “B” is garrisoned inside a town, it is not performing offensive actions. Rather it is only Army “A” conducting attack rounds, while Army “B” is just defending:
 
 
 
First Combat Tick (immediately);
 
  • Army “A” attacks Army “B” using its offense (Strength) stats
 
  • Army “B” defends against Army “A” using its defensive (Defence) stats
 
 
 
Second Combat Tick (after 1 hour has passed);
 
  • Army “A” attacks Army “B” using its offense (Strength) stats
 
  • Army “B” defends against Army “A” using its defensive (Defence) stats
 
  • and so on...
 
 
 
'''3. Edge Cases:'''
 
 
 
Army “A” is moving without attack order, Army “B” is stationary either outside of, or on a map point.
 
 
 
If Army “A” is moving because of a move order, while Army “B” is just standing around, it works the same way as in Scenarios 1 and 2 depending on B's position.
 
• Effectively, moving is actually identical to ordering an attack, even if Army “A” doesn't anticipate a fight,
 
• The only difference is with regards to ranged units, wherein they only move into melee range, whereas they will open fire if ordered to attack once they are in range
 
 
 
'''4. Cases Where Two Armies are in Movement:
 
'''
 
 
 
Army “A” and Army “B” run across each other while moving on the map no matter if outside or on a map point
 
If Army “A” and Army “B” are both moving without an attack order and then close within combat range- Scenario 1 applies
 
 
 
'''5. The Mechanics of a Single Close-Combat Attack Round:'''
 
 
 
1. The system looks at the position of the target army. It draws a circle of size around it and labels it “default Splash Radius”. All armies within the radius form the "splash armies". Let's call these armies within the area of defence, the "defending armies".
 
 
 
2. The system calculates total damage done by the attacking army, for all damage types, based on their offensive stats.
 
 
 
3. The system calculates the total damage done by all of the defending armies, for all damage types, based on their defensive stats.
 
 
 
4. The system applies the defender’s damage to the attacking army and removes units if needed. The system generates kills and produces News Articles if needed.
 
 
 
5. The system applies the attacker’s damage to the defending armies, splitting it up based on the damage area of the individual defending armies, compared to their total damage area excluding "fast flying units" which are not taking damage. The system removes units and produces News Articles.
 
 
 
6. The system applies building damage to the province, based on the damage done by both the attackers and the defenders.
 
 
 
==Attack-Defence Scenarios:==
 
 
 
'''Case 1:'''
 
 
 
If the countries are at war;
 
 
 
*German army (1 light infantry) stands on the road.
 
*Polish army (1 light infantry) gets a move order to walk ‘through’ the German army and attack the city behind them.
 
 
 
*Countries are at peace until the attack happens.
 
*Attack happens on German soil.
 
*Result: German attacking, Poland attacking.
 
 
 
'''Case 2:'''
 
 
 
*German army (1 light infantry) stands on the road.
 
*Polish army (1 light infantry) gets an attack order on the German army.
 
*Countries are at peace until the attack happens.
 
*Attack happens on German soil.
 
*Result: Germany attacking, Poland attacking.
 
 
 
'''Case 3:
 
'''
 
*Same as Case 1, but countries are at war before the attack happens.
 
*Result: Germany defending, Poland attacking.
 
 
 
'''Case 4:'''
 
 
 
*Same as Case 2, but countries are at war before the attack happens.
 
*Result: Germany defending, Poland attacking.
 
 
 
 
 
'''Case 5:'''
 
 
 
*Polish army (1 light infantry) stands on the road on German soil.
 
*German army attacks the Polish army.
 
*Countries are at war before the attack happens.
 
*Result: Germany attacking, Poland defending.
 
 
 
'''Case 6:'''
 
 
 
*Same as Case 5, but the countries were at peace when the attack happened
 
*The diplomacy status changed to 'at war' immediately
 
*Result: Germany attacking, Poland attacking
 
 
 
In summary, if the two countries are at peace, both armies will be assigned the "attacking" status regardless of who started the fight or on which land they are standing.
 
 
 
The "attacking" status and the other army the "defending" status, regardless of which land they are standing.
 
 
 
==The X-Factor==
 
 
 
<strong>Commander, no matter how well you draw your battle plans not all battles are the same and face uncertainty!</strong>
 
 
 
So it is '''IMPORTANT''' to note that terrain type, unit morale, tech level and numbers will have an important part too play in battles/conflicts in CoN.
 
 
 
However, the "X" Factor (and no not the singing competition) also known as the "possibility" factor for determining battle results.
 
 
 
This is a randomly generated number that adds some randomness and excitement to a battle so nothing is ever the same and always something different to experience.
 
 
 
This battle calculator is a Key feature of the game coding behind CoN, which is what makes the game enjoyable as no battle outcome is always the same and so not always predictable.
 
 
 
This X-factor keeps the game fun and enjoyable as not every battle will have the same outcome.
 
  
'''Advance with Caution:'''
+
Subsequent Combat Ticks in chronological order - hourly after FCT:
 +
<ul>
 +
<li> Army <b>A</b> attacks army <b>B</b> using its offensive stats
 +
<li> Army <b>B</b> defends against army <b>A</b> using its defensive stats
 +
<li> Army <b>A</b> attacks army <b>B</b> using its offensive stats
 +
<li> and so on...
 +
</ul>
 +
</div>
  
Choose your target carefully. Your divisors advise you not recommend declare war on a lot of nations as your country and people will suffer if you are fighting many wars at once.
+
<h3>Edge Cases</h3>
 +
<div>
 +
When you give a unit the order to move, and it has to pass through a hostile unit, it will engage in combat before it continues onward to its final destination.
 +
</div>
  
'''Note:''' As the game devolops and beta continues the game will update and will be in a state of change until out of beta so some info here may become outdated.
+
<h3>Cases Where Two Armies are in Movement</h3>
 +
<div>
 +
Army <b>A</b> and army <b>B</b> run across each other while moving on the map. If army <b>A</b> and army <b>B</b> are both moving without an attack order and are within combat range, they will engage.
 +
</div>

Revision as of 03:06, 7 February 2020

Combat at a Glance

Combat aims to establish total dominance over an opposing force. To succeed, you must hone your tactical awareness. As commander of an entire nation, you need a deep understanding of the intricate details of modern war. Study the mechanics of close-combat attack and defense, as well as how combat might play out in different scenarios. Victory goes to the prepared.

  1. Diligence - Anticipate diplomatic interference and counter attacks, as well as growing insurgent areas.
  2. Effective strategy - Think ahead and don't waste resources. Every decision counts, especially when you are investing real-time.
  3. Resources - Keep an eye on your resource production. Consider provinces and cities that you require for further Arms Industries construction. If new territory is hard to acquire on your own, ally with someone.
  4. Diplomacy - Diplomatic relations will make or break the game and must not be under-valued.

Combat In Detail

Army Stacking Penalties

fig1 - Low efficiency stack

To simulate modern logistics and fire-and-maneuver doctrines, you will notice a strict stacking penalty for units. Expect to see diminishing returns, and even negative modifiers, in combat strength and movement speed as units are added to the army stack.

High efficiency Medium efficiency Low efficiency

  • If marked yellow, the unit stack suffers from diminishing returns, i.e. every additional unit added to the stack makes it less effective.
  • If marked orange, every new unit added to the stack does not contribute additional strength.
  • If marked red, every new unit added to the stack weakens its overall strength.

Missile Warfare

Missile cruise chemical.png Missile cruise conventional.png Missile cruise nuclear.png

Missile ballistic chemical.png Missile ballistic conventional.png Missile ballistic nuclear.png

Missile icbm nuclear.png

Modern battlefields are extremely hostile due to the very high amount of damage concentrated in very small delivery systems, such as Cruise Missiles. In an effort to simulate the use of non-ballistic, tactical missiles on the modern battlefield, CON allows dedicated air, ground, and naval units to fire conventional, chemical, and nuclear cruise missiles at military targets.

Note that only cruise missiles are able to target and track units, while ballistic missiles and ICBMs can only target the centre-points of Provinces.

Terrain Modifiers

Terrain places specific demands on the soldiers and machines in CON. A unit's stats are directly affected by the type of terrain it is currently positioned on. Toggle the Terrain Types overlay from the Settings & Info Panel to aid your planning.

The following unit attributes are affected by terrain. You can view the modifiers for each unit through the Unit Info Panel:

7fddf610cb1613bdc4ecc819148165f2.png
  • Attack - A unit will be influenced either positively or negatively by this percentage when in this terrain while on attack.
  • Defense - A unit will be influenced either positively or negatively by this percentage when in this terrain while in defensive actions.
  • Speed Value - A unit will be modified by this value as it travels through the defined environment.
  • Hit Points - a unit’s Hit Points will be modified depending upon terrain.
  • Sight Range - The sight range at which your unit can be visually detected varies by terrain. This is different from radar range, and is shown on the map as the brightest view around your unit

Entrenching

Screen Shot 2017-12-07 at 14.03.55.png

Placing a unit stack on a provincial center-point will provide a defensive entrenchment bonus while it remains there. This is automatic and stops once the unit is ordered to move on. The entrenchment bonus can be increased through the construction of certain buildings.

Unit Healing

Ground and Air units can heal in cities which you control, as well as cities which you have access to, either through a coalition, through Shared Intelligence, or even through Right of Way. Note that units are not required to be at the centre of that city to heal, since being within the province borders is sufficient for recovery to take place. Also, air units will heal at the same rate as ships if they are on a carrier which is on coastal waters. (2 HP / Day)

The base healing for cities is +1HP per day per unit 'and increased according to the level of the Military Hospital in that city:

  • A level 1 Military Hospital heals at a rate of +1HP per day
  • A level 2 Military Hospital heals at a rate of +2HP per day
  • A level 3 Military Hospital heals at a rate of +3HP per day
  • A level 4 Military Hospital heals at a rate of +4HP per day
  • A level 5 Military Hospital heals at a rate of +5HP per day

The base healing for provinces is +0HP per day and increased according to the level of the Field Hospital in that province:

  • A level 1 Field Hospital heals at a rate of +1HP per day
  • A level 2 Field Hospital heals at a rate of +2HP per day
  • A level 3 Field Hospital heals at a rate of +3HP per day


Naval units recover HP in coastal waters at a rate of +2HP per day. Note that naval units need to be out of combat in order for HP recovery to take place.

Retreating

You can order a unit that is engaged in combat to retreat to the nearest, friendly territory, at the cost of hit points. Only ground and naval units can retreat.

  • Retreating units gain significant movement speed.
  • Even though retreating units bleed HP, they are incredibly hard to hit by hostile units.

Hardened Bunkers

Bunkers shield your population against weapons of mass destruction. The higher the bunker level, the more of a city's population will survive a serious attack.

  • Bunkers can be constructed in cities in order to shield the population from harm.
  • The amount of population shielded is twice the level of the bunker. E.g. a level 1 bunker shields a population of 2, a level 2 bunker shields a population of 4, and so on...
  • The shielded population takes no damage until the bunker is destroyed.

Crimes Against Humanity

In conflict zones, civilian casualties will often be inevitable. Certain units and weapons inflict more harm on local population than others. Be sure to check the Unit Info Panel to gauge how devastating the effects will be. If your actions indiscriminately cause civilian casualties during your conquest, there can be dire consequences:

  • Your national morale will begin to suffer.
  • Weapons such as chemical warheads and nuclear warheads may be highly effective at destroying soft and hard targets, but decimate local population in the process.
  • Your own nation's morale will recover very slowly over time after committing such crimes.

Units sent into enemy cities that are not yet conquered will start decimating the local population. This is considered a war crime and can have severe consequences with the morale of the player’s population – especially if large numbers of civilians suffer from this behavior.

Chemical and Nuclear Warfare

Probably the strongest weapons ever invented, these are the ultimate killers – albeit with a double edge. Any units caught in the cross-fire will be damaged, including your own units! Be warned, this may cause unintended wars or casualties as a result. The resulting loss of life, devastation and contamination wrought by one of these weapons of mass destruction will not go unchecked by other nations and of the perpetrator’s own population. In Conflict of Nations there is the real chance of the world turning into a contaminated wasteland, populated by unhappy survivors. We warned you…

Stealth Units

Stealth units can have both meeting and offensive/defensive engagements, and can infiltrate another nation's territory without triggering war. See the Stealth section for more info.

Anti-Air vs Missiles/Aircraft

When you launch missiles against a target, we distinguish between two cases:

Point Defense

Missile directly attacking a unit stack that contains an AA unit

If the stack that your missile is attacking is/contains an anti-air unit, the combat tick is calculated as Point Defense. This means that the anti-air unit will defend itself every time against incoming missiles or aircraft, i.e. there is no cool-down.

For example:
You fire two missiles against an anti-air unit. It does not matter whether you fired your missiles one second or one hour apart, anti-air will defend against them every time.

AA Envelope

Missile attacking a unit that is standing within friendly AA Envelope

If the stack that your missile is attacking is a unit that is standing within anti-air range, but is not part of the same stack, the combat tick is calculated as AA Envelope. This means that the anti-air unit will go on cool-down before it can defend a close-by unit again.

For example:
You quickly fire two missile against an infantry unit that is standing within an anti-air unit's envelope that is standing close by. You fire another missile directly at the anti-air unit as well:

  1. The first missile, aimed at the infantry unit, is shot down by the anti-air unit.
  2. The second missile, however, lands a hit on the infantry unit since the anti-air unit's envelope is on cool-down.
  3. The third missile, directly aimed at the anti-air unit, is shot down since it is calculated as Point Defense.

Acts of War

Declaring War through the Diplomatic Panel

The Diplomacy Screen from where you set your status towards a nation

To declare war, click the Diplomacy button and select the target player. Then, from the drop-down menu, change your status from Peace to War. You could even be diplomatic about the process and send a note stating your justifications for doing so, but most commanders won’t be so kind.

Declaring War through Invasion

Popup - You are about to declare war

You declare war by default, when you trespass on the province of a nation with which you do not share a special diplomatic relationship. You will receive a pop-up warning whenever your move order would constitute an act of war.

If you want to move units through another nation's territory, you both must be members of the same coalition, or your diplomatic relation with that country needs to be one of the following:

Changes to Population Morale

Morale Info

When you declare war, it affects your nation as a whole. This war penalty affects all your provinces' morale, which slows down resource production as well as troop mobilization. You receive a penalty for every country you are at war with.

To see your war penalty, select one of your provinces, and click the i button beside the Morale indicator in the province bar. This will also show you what else affects morale in the selected province.

Combat Mechanics

When two armies are engaged, combat rounds are calculated every hour. We differentiate between four possible scenarios:

  1. Meeting engagements
  2. Attack/Defense engagements
  3. Edge cases
  4. Cases where two armies are in movement

Meeting Engagement

Army A and B engaged in combat, outside the province's center-point

Scenario: Army A attacks army B in the open - where army B is stationed outside of the province's center-point.

First Combat Tick (immediately):

  • Army A attacks army B using its offensive stats
  • Army B defends against army A using its defensive stats
  • Army B counter-attacks army A using its offensive stats
  • Army A defends against army B using its defensive stats

Second Combat Tick (after 1 hour has passed):

  • Army A attacks Army B using its offensive stats
  • Army B defends against Army A using its defensive stats
  • Army B counter-attacks Army A using its offensive stats
  • Army A defends against Army B using its defensive stats
  • and so on...

Attack/Defense Engagement

Army B on province's center-point, defending against army A

Scenario: Army A attacks army B - where B is stationed on the province's center-point.

When army B is entrenched on a province's center-point, it is not performing offensive actions. Only army A conducts attack rounds, while army B is just defending.

First Combat Tick in chronological order - first exchange between the two armies, happens immediately:

  • Army A attacks army B using its offensive stats
  • Army B defends against army A using its defensive stats

Subsequent Combat Ticks in chronological order - hourly after FCT:

  • Army A attacks army B using its offensive stats
  • Army B defends against army A using its defensive stats
  • Army A attacks army B using its offensive stats
  • and so on...

Edge Cases

When you give a unit the order to move, and it has to pass through a hostile unit, it will engage in combat before it continues onward to its final destination.

Cases Where Two Armies are in Movement

Army A and army B run across each other while moving on the map. If army A and army B are both moving without an attack order and are within combat range, they will engage.