First ever playthrough of Jagged Alliance 2

Azrael the cat · Dec 26, 2009

Ok, I'm about to give Jagged Alliance 2 a first ever playthrough. I'm posting to ask if there are any mods I should install, or any patches that are necessary (and, if it's not inconvenient, is there a website that has them all).

Keep in mind that while I'm a vet of Civ 2, and a semi-hardcore (I hate that term, but more precisely I held a decent rank in WC3/TFT, and SC back in the day, although I doubt I could win even a mid-level ladder match these days) RTS player, but an utter noob when it comes to TB strategy. I never played JA or X-Com in the day, so I don't have that background to come in from.

Also, on an unrelated note, are there any special tricks needed to get Thief 2 working on XP? Have it installed, but it won't load past the mission requirements screen.

Thanks in advance.

spectre · Dec 26, 2009

Dunno about thief, except for the usual, patch it up, turn on compatibility mode.

Now, about Ja2. The place to get mods and files is here,
http://www.ja-galaxy-forum.com/
although, its quite easy to get lost there.

For your cherry-popping playthrough I recommend vanilla (but patch it up will all the official ones). Once you get comfortable you may try Urban Chaos, Dedrianna Lives and 1.13 (The last one is prolly the ultimate ja2 experience you can get, there were plans for porting the main mods to it, but I am not sure how it went).

Now, for actual tips, get yourself a nice, well rounded squad will all the skills - leadership, mechanical, medicine and explosives (this you'll need later), it doesn't have to be 90-something, but you definitely want over 70.
Then, make sure that the guys you hire can take care of themselves in combat, high AGI, high Marksmanship, good hitpoints, good dexterity.
Make note, some mercs do not like each other (some are not hard to figure out, some are).

Don't forget to make your own custom merc to fill in for any role you may need. The questionnaire may be a bit random if you don't know what you're doing, so take your time.

The main problem with the early game for some is that you only get handguns and smgs with pitiful range. Your mp5 should give you an edge early on, but the real fun starts when you get yourself a rifle. You can make the early game significantly easier by buying a merc with a long-arm in his starting equipment.

An alternative to this is to fight your battles at night. This is a bit harder, but much more rewarding - you need night vision and, preferably, night ops mercs. Use silenced guns and throwing knives for best effect.

You first objective is to make contact with the guerilla forces (there are some quest involved, in the end some of them will join you) then secure a steady source of income - you get this by capturing cities, talkign to the mine foreman and training enough militia to withstand the queen's counterattacks.

Good luck.

Burning Bridges · Dec 26, 2009

just follow spectres link

The most important things:

mercs with high wisdom learn faster. I like to start with a weak team and level them up so I always choose cheap mercs with high wisdom. A good starting team is: Barry(mechanic+explosives+lockpicking), MD(medic), Igor(night+all-round), Blood (all round), Ira (teaching)

you need not use up all your APs every turn, often it's better to wait behind cover (you might get an interrupt)

carry as little equipment as possible, weight makes you (much) slower

if you press 'R', your mercs will run

learn how to beat enemies unconscious to grab their equipment (!)

sry I not gonna write more all has been covered many times, except if you have specific questions

Count yourself lucky that you found JA2. You are about to discover the best game that was ever made!

spectre · Dec 26, 2009

I think the most important piece of advice when choosing merc is - experiment, choose the guys with best voice over and lines. That's the way to play it.

SCO · Dec 26, 2009

spectre said:
I think the most important piece of advice when choosing merc is - experiment, choose the guys with best voice over and lines. That's the way to play it.

Nooooo. Choose the team where the mercs hate each other.

http://www.ja-galaxy-forum.com/board/ub ... 666&page=1

laclongquan · Dec 26, 2009

Vanilla is what we call JA2 version 112. Version 113 mod the game quite heavily, and provide you an extremely improved experience with your most replayable game you have.

Ver 112:

There's a trick to load 6 IMP customized mercs. Basically, before access IMP you do a save. Get in, design the merc you wanna play, save with a distinct name, with disctince voice. each time you done, the game will create a IMP file in your folder that you dont need to care about. 6 files done, you reload the fresh save, access IMP and type their name in the pass code. 6 disctinctive IMPs merc and you got a full squad, taylor made for your desire.

There are two major styles: One is go straight for the town with the airport, do the quest normally so that you got a secure base. Another is go left to the casino town with weapon shop, prize fighting arena, and another easy town at the extreme west (left). But generally, you take your time to play and dont be hasty.

Dont install any mode other than the patches that make version 112. Anything else can be left until later, your next play.

Ashery · Dec 26, 2009

Think I did my first full playthrough using 1.13 with the new inventory disabled. Also prefer to play with "Drop All" turned on as there's nothing more frustrating than facing a sniper only to get some shit ammo to drop after you kill'em. Although, admittedly, it really cuts down on the difficulty, even on expert, due to all of your mercs having at least good equipment (M4 Commando, for instance) after Drassen.

Keep in mind that a *lot* of the wiki information (on almost all JA2 wikis) is out of date.

Currently doing a playthrough with HAM 3.5 and enjoying it quite a bit. Although my usual night strategy can get a bit tedious after a while, even if you can liberate an entire town in one night. Really liking the revamped suppressive fire, though. A few of the other changes also give the difficulty a much needed nudge higher as the game has been fairly easy up until this point. This'll probably all change once I face some enemies that carry a mortar with'em. Nothing like my fairly tightly packed night force being spotted and facing a mortar shell going off in the center of their formation.

Burning Bridges · Dec 27, 2009

drop all is a big no-no

saenz · Dec 27, 2009

GlobalExplorer said:
drop all is a big no-no

I second that. Struggling for gear is a major gameplay dynamic. Disappearing loot, albeit unrealistic, keeps the game streamlined and interesting. Otherwise it turns into loot-bloated battlefield scavenger sim like Silent Storm, FO:T, and 7.62MM.

Fez · Dec 28, 2009

saenz said:
GlobalExplorer said:

drop all is a big no-no

Click to expand...

I second that. Struggling for gear is a major gameplay dynamic. Disappearing loot, albeit unrealistic, keeps the game streamlined and interesting. Otherwise it turns into loot-bloated battlefield scavenger sim like Silent Storm, FO:T, and 7.62MM.

Early on in the game I might have felt I disagreed with this, but having played it through a few times over the years I agree. It's part of the balance of the game to limit the loot and gear you get.

Ashery · Dec 28, 2009

Fez said:
saenz said:

GlobalExplorer said:

drop all is a big no-no

Click to expand...

I second that. Struggling for gear is a major gameplay dynamic. Disappearing loot, albeit unrealistic, keeps the game streamlined and interesting. Otherwise it turns into loot-bloated battlefield scavenger sim like Silent Storm, FO:T, and 7.62MM.

Click to expand...

Early on in the game I might have felt I disagreed with this, but having played it through a few times over the years I agree. It's part of the balance of the game to limit the loot and gear you get.

I'm coming to realize the balance issue as well after clearing most of Alma. Wish there was a better way to balance it than to simply introduce disappearing loot...

Burning Bridges · Dec 28, 2009

I think every one of us got pissed off and enabled drop all at some point. But you'll see it's the slow, steady progression makes for the incredible long term term appeal of this game. With drop all I find it gets uninteresting pretty fast.

Shuma · Dec 28, 2009

Drop all off + the Drassen counterattack makes for some ridiculously frustrating gameplay. I don't know if I agree with you guys.

ady5 · Dec 29, 2009

If you wanna grow some balls in this game, and want some nice toys from the baddies, there's only one macho way to do it. Play at night, eliminate some idiots on the other side, have 2 stealthy night ops guys(i like making my guy with those traits) ambush some lonely sniper or retard AI left behind, beat the shit out of him, make him unconscious but do not kill him yet, and steal his weapon and gear. Mind you, there's a bug when you steal shit, the game gets stuck in the loop, but in v1.13 they kinda fixed it by pressing a key, forgot what it is.

Also yeah, go for high wisdom, low level guys in the end. They cost less and they gain skills in no time. I like starting with Buns(high wis, good marksman, trainer) and Barry(wis, mechanical, bombs...i think)

MessiahMan · Dec 29, 2009

as far as thief goes, if you've got a multiple core processor, set the affinity so it's only on one of your cores.

Also, this little fix is your friend. (It works with the first thief and thief gold, as well.)

http://timeslip.chorrol.com/ddfix.html

MetalCraze · Dec 29, 2009

"Ridiculous" Drassen counter-attack can be easily avoided.
First take the top sector, then take the bottom sector. Train your infantry to the max until it will start roaming around and then some. The attack won't happen until you control all 3 sectors. Now capture the middle sector and immediately start training more militia.
The AI isn't suicidal so if it will see that you have shittons of militia around and inside Drassen it won't attack.
It will eventually attack but congratulations - you bought yourself some time.

I'm also hoping you are playing Talonsoft version (2 CD, 1.03 one) with 1.13. Gold pack has stuff cut out (like additional dialogues in the brothel, harsher gore, crows eating corpses that were lying on the street for too long etc.)

ady5 said:
If you wanna grow some balls in this game, and want some nice toys from the baddies, there's only one macho way to do it. Play at night

Macho - riiiiiiight. Night time with appropriate percs is an ultimate imba. You can clear whole sectors with just 2-3 mercs covering each other at night.

Ashery · Dec 29, 2009

MetalCraze said:
"Ridiculous" Drassen counter-attack can be easily avoided.
First take the top sector, then take the bottom sector. Train your infantry to the max until it will start roaming around and then some. The attack won't happen until you control all 3 sectors. Now capture the middle sector and immediately start training more militia.
The AI isn't suicidal so if it will see that you have shittons of militia around and inside Drassen it won't attack.
It will eventually attack but congratulations - you bought yourself some time.

I'm also hoping you are playing Talonsoft version (2 CD, 1.03 one) with 1.13. Gold pack has stuff cut out (like additional dialogues in the brothel, harsher gore, crows eating corpses that were lying on the street for too long etc.)

ady5 said:

If you wanna grow some balls in this game, and want some nice toys from the baddies, there's only one macho way to do it. Play at night

Click to expand...

Macho - riiiiiiight. Night time with appropriate percs is an ultimate imba. You can clear whole sectors with just 2-3 mercs covering each other at night.

I did exactly what you were suggesting for my playthrough and my entire militia (All 40 veterans that were able to support the mine) died after killing a total of three or four of their force.

My five mercs then retook the mine that night and suffered a total of four points of damage when camping on top of one of the northern houses. Admitedly, it was significantly easier thanks to drop all providing me with a sniper rifle and a couple of low end assault rifles.

Only needing 2-3 mercs to clear a sector at night is a bit of an exaggeration, though. Doesn't change the fact that it is imbalanced as hell, however.

pipka · Dec 29, 2009

MetalCraze said:
I'm also hoping you are playing Talonsoft version (2 CD, 1.03 one) with 1.13. Gold pack has stuff cut out (like additional dialogues in the brothel, harsher gore, crows eating corpses that were lying on the street for too long etc.)

Skyway pulls facts out of his ass. You could at least try to back up this claim with some nice reference.

MetalCraze · Dec 29, 2009

Ashery said:
I did exactly what you were suggesting for my playthrough and my entire militia (All 40 veterans that were able to support the mine) died after killing a total of three or four of their force.

Let me guess - you weren't supporting your militia with your mercs at all?
Militia are there for being meatshields and to turn an enemy attention from you. It's a cakewalk when you have 20, let alone 40 of them.

Only needing 2-3 mercs to clear a sector at night is a bit of an exaggeration, though.

Nope. There are 2 percs and a couple of items that provide a very imba assistance. Only one character will really need them - he will be the spotter. Just find a nice place with lots of cover and possibly one way through it. Fire a shot or two. Enemies will come to investigate just like in a bad Hollywood movie. And then other ones, and the other ones. Switch positions when you run out of targets. Some of AIs will of course try to play it smart but it will be very easy to pick them off one by one from their cover with the help of the darkness. I wish AIs weren't as blind at night.

pipka said:
Skyway pulls facts out of his ass. You could at least try to back up this claim with some nice reference.

Of course I pull facts out of my ass. It's my evil plan to discredit Strategy First's release and promote that Talonsoft zombie publisher! Why else would I write that?

Ashery · Dec 29, 2009

True, my mercs weren't supporting the militia. Another suggestion I read was to move out of Drassen before the counter attack hits and just retake it during the night. Figured I'd mix the strats together and see what came out.

And not all maps have one, let alone multiple spots where your mercs can hide without being flanked. Using the edge of the map is dangerous as hell due to possible reinforcements. Rooftops aren't feasible with only two or three mercs, but do wonders when you have five or six. Suppose you could go from building to building and just watch the doors and windows. Also, with only two or three mercs, you're really at the mercy of the rng. After even a single round where you had some bad luck you could end up horribly fucked.

ady5 · Dec 30, 2009

MetalCraze said:
Macho - riiiiiiight. Night time with appropriate percs is an ultimate imba. You can clear whole sectors with just 2-3 mercs covering each other at night.

you seem to quote just the part that fucking serves you. If you wanna play at night and just profit from the stupid AI like a pussy sure, go and ambush them like you said. They'll rush, admittedly with a lower frequency in v.113, but still.

What i was trying to prove is that you can play this as a thief too. Spot a baddie, get two mercs next to him, try and take him out of his breath by punching him with one merc, then with the other in the same turn get next to him and steal ALL his gear. If you do it right, the next turn when the baddie gets his breath back, he'll just bitch slap one of your mercs with a punch or two, while you have all his weapons and gear. Voila. The thief way. You can't imagine what kind of gear you can gather this way before you leave the first town, at insane level.

And mind you, at insane level, you can do the first town only at night, with the kind of mercs you're getting for the money and the kind of gear you have then. Unless you want to reload after each missed shot.

And what a great job v.1.13 did with the ini...a modder's orgasm

MetalCraze · Dec 30, 2009

Ashery said:
And not all maps have one, let alone multiple spots where your mercs can hide without being flanked. Using the edge of the map is dangerous as hell due to possible reinforcements. Rooftops aren't feasible with only two or three mercs, but do wonders when you have five or six. Suppose you could go from building to building and just watch the doors and windows. Also, with only two or three mercs, you're really at the mercy of the rng. After even a single round where you had some bad luck you could end up horribly fucked.

It's in fact easier than you think to do clean sweeps at night with 2-3 mercs if you know what you're doing.
I managed to clear some maps even with 2 mercs at night (after they got 4-5 levels and a good night equipment + camo of course). One was the sniper and the other one covered him with a silenced SMG. I was taking positions between houses, trees, other obstacles (and there are enough of them on most maps). I just had to scan a few directions each turn with the second merc. Camo provided a perfect night cover (but I imagine you never go on night operations without the camo paint, right?) for the sniper and the silenced SMG was doing a good job with enemies that got close to a range where the sniper could be visible without giving away mercs' locations.

Burning Bridges · Dec 30, 2009

Did you enable drop all only to be able to handle the counter attack? A very bad choice you made. Do what you like but I play with drassen counterattack off. I also set reinforcements set to "only in cities" because otherwise soldiers will spawn directly in my mercs lap .. complete horseshit.

Nightfighting is indeed kind of a cheat, especially in cities.

MetalCraze · Dec 30, 2009

I think when I played JA2 with 1.13 it still didn't have an option to turn the counter-attack off - I even remember posts on 1.13 forums that were basically "deal with it". Nice to know they've implemented the option, although I would've wished they would've cut the number of enemies in two, not totally disabling it.

The_scorpion · Dec 31, 2009

MetalCraze said:
I think when I played JA2 with 1.13 it still didn't have an option to turn the counter-attack off - I even remember posts on 1.13 forums that were basically "deal with it". Nice to know they've implemented the option, although I would've wished they would've cut the number of enemies in two, not totally disabling it.

disable reinforcements and you get a more "reasoable" number of enemies. Or clear out some of the sectors in which the AI gathers first. Or both.

First ever playthrough of Jagged Alliance 2

Arcane

Arcane

Enviado de meu SM-G3502T usando Tapatalk

Arcane

Arcane

Arcane

Prophet

Enviado de meu SM-G3502T usando Tapatalk

Scholar

Erudite

Prophet

Enviado de meu SM-G3502T usando Tapatalk

Scholar

Educated

Cipher

Arcane

Prophet

Savant

Arcane

Prophet

Educated

Arcane

Enviado de meu SM-G3502T usando Tapatalk

Arcane

Liturgist