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So I've got the second day of a tournament on with my brits. Condedering this was my first tourney after a year off DW I feel I did well (went 3-0).

Two of my games were just fine, against EotBs and PE. I felt that I could compete in every field, we were fairly well matched, and victories came from superior tactics and ability to roll sixes.

However my game against a CoA fleet was another matter. I felt like I basically had to live in fear of his shooting and any gains I made were quickly negated by shields. My cruisers died in two turns of shooting and he wasn't even focusing on them. I only barely managed to pull a victory out of my arse.

Meanwhile there's a guy playing french curb stomping the opposition, not a power gamer type, he's just out playing them. I'm probably going to have to face the frogs and maybe CoA tomorrow. So what are the strengths and weaknesses of these fleets and what can I do to hurt them?

Well, you are looking at two distinct tactical challenges there. As you may have noticed, the CoA, in general, are a close-in fleet. So, standing off and softening them up from range would probably be the best approach, and the KoB definitely have the tools to let you do that.

The French, on the other hand, are much better at range, so you are fairly evenly matched as far as that battle goes. Close in, the heat lance and lancette can come into play, so watch out for that. However, you are stronger in boarding than the RoF, so that tactic becomes a valid option for you. Finally, keep in mind that the RoF has no shields, and relies on Retardant Armor and the Cloud Generator to fend off damage. However, the Cloud Generator is only on after the model carrying it has been activated; that means that all else being equal you should target the models carrying cloud generators before they activate to prevent them from getting the benefit of it.

Ruckdog wrote: that means that all else being equal you should target the models carrying cloud generators before they activate to prevent them from getting the benefit of it.

Thats a pretty good rule of thumb regardless of cloud generators.

Didn't have to fight CoA at all again, but the french battle was interesting.

We certainly proved that cruisers die under heavy fire, for reference he had a flying battleship, some flying cruisers, voltaires, some frigates, some subs and torpedo bombers. All in all not much happened besides our cruisers getting annihilated.

Those voltaires can put out a lot of fire, I'll have to prioritize them in future.

EmilCrane wrote:Didn't have to fight CoA at all again, but the french battle was interesting.

We certainly proved that cruisers die under heavy fire, for reference he had a flying battleship, some flying cruisers, voltaires, some frigates, some subs and torpedo bombers. All in all not much happened besides our cruisers getting annihilated.

Those voltaires can put out a lot of fire, I'll have to prioritize them in future.

Did you win?

EmilCrane wrote:Didn't have to fight CoA at all again, but the french battle was interesting.

We certainly proved that cruisers die under heavy fire, for reference he had a flying battleship, some flying cruisers, voltaires, some frigates, some subs and torpedo bombers. All in all not much happened besides our cruisers getting annihilated.

Those voltaires can put out a lot of fire, I'll have to prioritize them in future.

Interesting...so the RoF player didn't take any heat lances at all...

purplefood wrote:

EmilCrane wrote:Didn't have to fight CoA at all again, but the french battle was interesting.

We certainly proved that cruisers die under heavy fire, for reference he had a flying battleship, some flying cruisers, voltaires, some frigates, some subs and torpedo bombers. All in all not much happened besides our cruisers getting annihilated.

Those voltaires can put out a lot of fire, I'll have to prioritize them in future.

Did you win?

Technically no, he won because of scenario conditions, the VPs were about even though

EmilCrane wrote:

purplefood wrote:

EmilCrane wrote:Didn't have to fight CoA at all again, but the french battle was interesting.

We certainly proved that cruisers die under heavy fire, for reference he had a flying battleship, some flying cruisers, voltaires, some frigates, some subs and torpedo bombers. All in all not much happened besides our cruisers getting annihilated.

Those voltaires can put out a lot of fire, I'll have to prioritize them in future.

Did you win?

Technically no, he won because of scenario conditions, the VPs were about even though

Fair enough, better luck next time.

purplefood wrote:
Fair enough, better luck next time.

We tied for first in the tournament, I won on sportsmanship

But I am still wondering on how to deal with CoA, they seem to be able to dish it out and take it with their shields, with their stupid re-rolls, combined with good CC their functionally immune to torps and I can't win in a gunnery duel, unless I can get in RB2 and stay there somehow

Well, COA are fairly vulnerable to boarding, and they will tend to be a little bit outnumbered as their ships are a bit pricier on average once they are fully upgraded. The thing is, shields can be a very streaky thing; I've had games where they have done little for my CoA opponents, even with the re-roll. I would be hesitant to close to RB2 with them too early, as that is where their shooting is most effective (PE would be the exception ).

Functionally immune to torpedoes?

purplefood wrote:Functionally immune to torpedoes?

Well you've got to get through the CC, then the shields with their re-rolls, so by that time the damage is usually whittled away

Of course shields do do much when you're trying to stop a whole dive bomb attack