CNC Generals: The Basics

This strategy section has been brought to you by our Generals Strategist.  He has played the multi-player test since it was introduced, so he has been strategizing for a long time.  More information can be found in our staff page.

    Every real-strategy game has two important aspects to it that are critical for winning games. The first being micro-management. This is a combination of things including how fast you move your mouse, your ability to scan the map and use the mini-map effectively, having complete control over your units, issuing orders quickly, etc. The other important aspect of the game and the most obvious is of course good strategy. In order to have good strategies there are several key things that you need to know including the weaknesses of each side, the strengths of each side, how to counter each unit, being familiar with the map you are playing, etc.

    If you are real good at one of these things it will help make up for the other side, but if you get real good at both then you will be able to win more than you lose and the better you get the more you will be able to dominate on the battlefield. The bad news is it is very hard for someone to tell you how to be good at micro-management. The only way you can really get better is through experience or by having a better player watch you and tell you what you need to work on (this still doesn't always help). The good news is everyone has strategies and its not that hard to learn what strategy someone uses and try it out for yourself. The trick is finding the good strategies and making sure they work for you. Hopefully this site well provide you with the strategies you need to be victorious.


    Now to focus on the basic concepts every good Generals player has to know. Almost everyone will learn these things after playing for a while but I tend to see a lot of newer players missing a few important things.

Time

    This is a real-time strategy game which means you cant just sit around thinking about what you are going to do next. There are no turns in this game. The faster you move the bigger advantage you have. This goes hand in hand with your micro-managing skills. The game does help you micro-manage better with a few features like hotkeys, formations and waypoints. Overall though you will need to practice and try different things to improve your micro-management skills.

Supplies

    Obviously this is one of the most important aspects of the game. You need supplies for everything in the game. You can not get by in a game with just one supply dock. At the start of every game your number one priority should be to secure a second supply dock. This means go and secure one as soon as your second worker or dozer is out, DON'T WAIT. The more supplies that you have control of the bigger advantage you have.
 

     A lot of new players simply think that if they make more gathering units for one supply dock they will get money faster. Of course this is not true because it takes time for the gatherers to load and unload. The amount of gathering units you need depends on how far away from the supply dock you build your supply center. Generally, it takes two Chinooks for the USA, two to three trucks for China, and five to seven workers for the GLA. It takes practice when you play the GLA or China to get your supply center positioned as close as possible without causing traffic jams but the important thing is to have the right amount of workers/trucks. If you have to build it farther away just make sure your gathering units are not waiting to load or unload because if they are sitting idle then you have to many.

Base Building

    This may seem like a simple enough concept but it actually takes a lot more planning if you want to build your base quickly and efficiently. You only have a limited amount of starting funds and it is easy to spend all your money on buildings and construction units which will make you vulnerable to rushes. Your starting funds should go to establishing a good cash flow and getting some units out to defend against rushes. When you are the USA or China I suggest only making one extra dozer. At the beginning of the game all you can make is a power plant or a barracks, then supply centers and defense, then a war factory or airfield. This makes more than two dozers a waste of money because you cant build every structure until you have your low tech structures. Many of you might say that with a third or fourth dozer you can secure more supply docks and thus make your chances of success greater. Remember though with each dozer you make you lose 1000 credits of your starting funds and if you make a defensive structure that's another 1000-1200 credits plus power if you need it. This will make you even more vulnerable to rushes because you will be spreading your funds very thinly over a wide area and you will be lacking infantry and vehicles for early game defense. My advice is stick with two dozers at the start of the game and secure supply docks one at a time. 

    The GLA on the other hand uses workers instead of dozers. They build slower and they are weaker but they are much cheaper than a dozer. The GLA should always try to secure more than one supply dock. I always send 2-3 workers out to secure supply docks. You are almost guaranteed a second supply dock and most likely a third unless your enemy is the GLA or they made a lot of dozers (which is bad for them). The GLA also have tunnels so you wont run into the same problem as the USA or China has with spreading yourself to thin because all of your defense units (including the free RPG guys) can move wherever they are needed quickly and easily.


Unit Mix

    The great thing about Generals is that the balance is very good compared to other C&C titles. Not only that but every unit is useful throughout the entire game. In Red Alert 2 most games simply turn into who can get the most grizzly/rhino tanks fastest. You just cant do that in Generals every unit continues to have a use even after you have the ability to make all of them. If you attempt to make an attack force with only one type of unit you may very well win some games. If you make a mixed attack force, however, it's effectiveness greatly improves. In fact, you can even destroy a larger more expensive force if you have a good mix and they do not. I tend to classify all units under these groups: infantry, light vehicles, tanks, long-range weapons, and aircraft. Of course specialized units like the hero units and hijackers have their own uses and don't always fit into these groups. If you have two or more types of units in your attack force you will have an easier time facing enemy forces.