Fallen Haven

It's rumored that Bubba Einstein, Albert's lesser known brother, established his own theory of relativity while Al was vacationing in the Bronx. It goes something like this: "Strength and Power are equally but no more effective than the Speed and Distance opposing them if both are used correctly in Fallen Haven." Unfortunately, Bubba's sad demise at the hands of an early cotton candy machine leaves no credible witness to verify his theory. Nevertheless, it's been proven time and time again during game play.

The Taurans, daunting alien warriors with enough firepower to turn the strongest Earthling vehicle into sautéed seaweed, aren't nearly as overpowering as it first may seem. The Humans, weaker than nasal spray but quicker than a Maalox moment, do have some advantages over these celestial powerhouses. Whichever side you're playing, the prudent advice to "exploit enemy weaknesses, reinforce allied strengths" rings true.

Rush delivery: avoiding complacency
If there's any single point to remember when playing Fallen Haven, let it be this: keep moving and strike fast. If at any time there arises within you a warm, gooey feeling of coziness and a sense that everything's under control, relish in it. Why? Because you'll need the happy memories to sustain your spirits after the loser's screen pops up several turns later.

Nothing in Fallen Haven can be safely tucked away out of harm's reach. Setting it apart from other games, where established front lines and minimal reinforcement of flank areas works effectively, Fallen Haven forces players to constantly monitor every province. Believe it or not, before the first turn ever takes place, start picturing the end game stages. Be thinking of how to best protect your capitol, because almost assuredly it will be attacked (numerous times) before the game is over. It's crucial to capitalize on every dormant turn to expand, expand, and expand.

There are typically two schools of thought where tactics are concerned. "Reinforce and Overwhelm," or "Blitz and Beleaguer." Only the latter works in this game, because holding back to gather enough troops for a decisive victory in one province will leave two unconquered provinces that the computer now owns. The tide of battle doesn't easily sway, so once you're behind it's extremely difficult, if not impossible, to recover.

Location, location, location
When provinces are conquered and under your control, begin building up rapidly with whatever appropriate structures need building. Many times, existing structures will survive unscathed or lightly scathed from battle. This savings equates to more available cash for purchasing troops, defenses, and structures. It's also incentive to avoid damaging structures as much as possible during the invasion.

Look very carefully at each neighboring province, reviewing their potential benefits to your fast-rising empire. This may seem obvious, but place structures where they can be most effective. If reconnaissance shows an energy poor province, don't waste your bucks building power plants. Instead, use the cash to either draft troops for use in invasions, or build structures that tap the province's potential for any of the three necessary commodities. Remember: one mining station in a rich province out-produces as many as ten mining stations in a poor one.

Provinces with special missions add a little extra incentive to invade them, but only do so if they won't detract from the ultimate goal of victory over the enemy. These special missions can be just as distracting as they are helpful.

Finally, at the beginning of the game, don't trust the computer to modify your technology settings. Defy Mother Goose by putting all your eggs in one basket, building up a single technology at a time. One technology advantage available in a few turns easily beats out several technology gains unavailable for many turns. On the human side, focus on increasing the amount of damage you can inflict on "ALF and Company." This compliments the inherent advantage of greater range. Taurans can benefit from any technology gains, but do best when beefing up their rate of fire. Think of it as two decimating attacks for the price of one.

Legos and Lincoln Logs: the art of fortress design
One of the pure joys in the game lies in the ability to create and tailor fortresses however you choose. While some of the more conventional methods apply to fortress design, there are a few lesser known rules of thumb to consider.

First, some provinces are ringed in by natural obstructions or map edges. A battle with four fronts leans far more to the attacker than the same battle with one or two fronts to defend. Utilize the terrain to keep the battles focused on a single front, and with the right equipment many assaults can be repelled with minimal loss.

Second, utilize the cheap equipment for maximum effect. Towers are always a decent payoff, and en masse can blunt an assault tremendously before any troop to troop combat takes place. And on the subject of troops....

Thirdly, in gridiron terms, don't ask your nose tackle to run a post route for the end zone. In other words, certain troop types have powerful abilities depending on their combat situation. It's suicidal to place a human squad into the open air beyond the fortress gates. Place one behind the walls, though, and woe to the tank that tromps too close beside that wall, only to be dissolved like a salted slug from the squad's mortar. On the other hand, a Tauran Mega-Tank loses its effectiveness in a defensive posture when it could net far more deadly results as an offensive assault vehicle.

Lastly, as a contingency plan, make the inside of the fort as treacherous for the enemy from within as the initial attack on its outside walls. Never leave a large enough gap between structures for a dropship to land right behind your fortified walls. Doing so negates any tactical advantage beyond "frenetic backpedaling," as well as stifles the local tourism industry (let's face it; trying to explain these disastrous matters to street-side body piercing vendors can be a chilling experience). Merely placing a single wall section between two buildings offers enough insurance against unwelcome visitors, and it's well worth its asking price in the end.

The big picture: strategic thoughts and pondering
If you're not conquering provinces equally as fast as the enemy, you're losing. Period. Carefully watch how fast the computer expands its territory. Better yet, start a fake game, do nothing for a few turns, and watch the rate of expansion (since the game lacks any random modifiers, the pattern you see when surveying the AI's movements will be consistent game to game at the same difficulty level).

See how the computer tries to eat up a province a turn? That's as subtle a clue as a Dear John letter etched onto your bifocals (the magnified half). The tightrope to be walked in this situation divides victory from defeat. Without jeopardizing the defense of any of your currently owned provinces, a sizable army (with enough brute force to conquer a province) must be enlisted in order to continue expansion. It's extremely difficult to avoid the pitfall of building up four or five turns, going on the attack with a comfortably equipped force, and repeating as necessary. It's also fatal.

With that in mind, the focus suddenly turns from massive military domination for achieving victory to a smaller, well-trained force. Coordinate as many unit types that work together well as possible. On the human side, snipers are extremely valuable for long range attacks. This contrasts the Taurans, whose Flyers can feint an attack from one front, allowing your other units to attack from a different position once the defensive forces mobilize against the initial Flyer attack.

At the early stages of the game, it's a good idea to keep the front provinces well defended. As soon as you think the enemy's technology allows for orbital assaults (about when first contact is made,) immediately produce or ferry troops to every province to balance out defenses among them all.

The killing fields
Troops will be lost: nothing will stop casualties in Fallen Haven. The not-so-magic trick here lies in minimizing these losses while maximizing enemy losses. The remnants of a surviving force gain experience, which directly equates to better accuracy and less whining among the ranks for better toilet tissue at the army exchange.

Combined arms tactics almost always overpower an equal force of a single troop type. Why? The effectiveness of balancing out one troop's weaknesses with another troop's strengths can't be underestimated. Artillery units weaken, sniper units mop up, heavy armored units advance, and the 14th Snuggles battalion remains in the flank to clean bugs off the dropship's windshield from summer hyperspace travel.

Imagine an envelope around your forces, a protective layer wherein each unit can rely on the firepower of others to protect it. Stretch a unit too far out of the envelope, and most likely it's missile meat during the enemy's turn.

Above all else, speed is the key. Maintain or surpass the expansion of the enemy, and your victories will be the stuff of military legends and lore. Lag behind or hesitate too much, and you'll saluting an empty Pez dispenser come demotion time.

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