[11-2-10] Allen's Strategies

Learn essential Total Annihilation strategies from Allen's guide, covering cover usage, combined arms, rushing tactics, scouting, unit dispersal, repair vs. charge decisions, and capturing vs. destroying.

General Tips:

• Always use cover. The game rewards positioning, and being caught out of position or on lower ground against an enemy with high ground will result in heavy losses.
• Combined arms are crucial. Use armor units to absorb damage, supported by longer-ranged units like Fidos and Hammers. Avoid matching heavy tanks directly against rocket-equipped K-bots or highly maneuverable units, as they can be difficult for tanks to hit. Use smaller units like Peewees in squads to slow down enemy K-bots, allowing your tanks to engage them effectively.

Rushing:

• Tank, Peewee, and vehicle rushes can be effective in open terrain. However, against a dug-in enemy with little cover, expect significant losses (around 3:1) until their position is overrun.
• Be mindful of debris created by destroyed units. Direct fire weapons can get obstructed by debris, hindering your advance. Use indirect fire weapons (rockets) to attack enemies from behind cover provided by debris, such as destroyed tanks.

Scouting Pays:

• Scout ahead with units possessing good radar and visibility to avoid ambushes. Scouts can also identify alternative attack angles that offer terrain advantages.
• Position long-range indirect fire units (like Samsons) near your scout. Once an enemy is detected via radar, you can often target them without taking return fire.
• Use naval units to shell inland targets. If land units approach your ships, retreat them to the shore and shell them as they approach. Artillery is expensive but can save resources and time by forcing the enemy to produce more units to replace those lost. Wasting enemy units at no cost to your own is always the best option.

Unit Dispersal:

• Avoid bunching units together. The computer often spreads its units effectively, unless terrain forces them to clump. When units explode, they are less likely to damage nearby allied units if they are spread out.
• Spread units out by about an inch, giving larger units more space. This reduces the chance of chain reaction explosions from unit deaths and presents a smaller overall target for the enemy.

To Repair or Charge Forward?:

• This is a judgment call. The computer often targets the most dangerous and highest-damage unit.
• If you break for repairs, you might lose crucial fire support. If you stay, you risk losing the unit and potentially damaging adjacent units due to explosions.
• Alternatively, you can pull back a damaged unit to be repaired by a repair bot. Repairing is generally free in terms of energy and metal, adds experience to the surviving unit, and saves time and resources compared to replacing it.
• In some situations, charging forward to engage an enemy at point-blank range can be effective. This allows for free shots, keeps the enemy occupied, and can inflict additional damage through the explosion. You can also force a unit to self-destruct by pressing Control + D, which can be useful against critically weakened enemy units if timed correctly, but it is costly.

Capturing vs. Destroying:

• Whenever possible, capture enemy units. This saves significant time and resources.
• Generally, capture non-aggressive units. However, if an enemy unit cannot damage your commander (e.g., a ship when your commander is underwater), capturing it can be a humorous and effective tactic.