The Basics:Building a proper company in Europe in Ruins can make or break a game. It's an unwritten rule that some games in EiR are decided before the "Launch" button is pressed, such is the power (or weakness) of a properly (or poorly) made company. At the absolute most basic level of company construction, there are two dominating archetypes: spam companies and balanced companies.
A spam company does what it says on the tin; 40 Riflemen, 40 Volksgrenadiere, 6 Shermans, 7 StuGs, 10+ Tetrarchs. The list goes on; as many units in Europe in Ruins lack a defined hardcap (i.e. a limit of 3 within any one company), it is entirely possible to spam one unit type up to the limit of your company's resources. This company build forgoes flexibility for raw power in one specific area (maximum AT, maximum capping potential, maximum LVs to be as annoying as possible). There is a pre-existing guide on how to counter such spammy companies here:
http://forums.europeinruins.com/index.php?topic=17614.0At the other end of the spectrum are more balanced companies; an even spread of infantry, tanks, MGs, support units, and so on. It must be stressed that these as well as spam companies exist on a spectrum; all companies in EiR do. It is up to you, the player, to experiment with as many unit combinations as possible to discover what wins YOU the most games. What build works for one ex member of the 1v1 Auto ladders from the olden days of CoH may not work for a CoH2 veteran who's micro ability boils down to "attack move to enemy spawn".
Europe in Ruins has such a large set of unit and upgrade combinations that defining every company is next to impossible. Learning the ins and outs of company creation is a process; every player that has come to EiR has endured one or two dozen games of getting kicked around before they got the hang of both company creation and gameplay. Don't be discouraged if the going is tough as you set out, ALL of us have taken our lumps over the years.
Rules to Follow I - Your Starting Call-in:There are three basic rules that each company should strive to follow.
1 - A 25 pop starting call-in (commonly and henceforth improperly typed as "callin") with a balanced set of units and at least 2 forms of strong AT (a Pak and P4, an ATG and an up-gunned Sherman, a pair of Marders).
Rules to Follow II - The Rest: 2 - Multiple sets of 10 (or thereabouts) pop callins for use throughout the rest of the game. Larger callins might be prevented from coming onto the field due to lack of spare popcap, and smaller, single unit ones may run up the callin timer to a point where it cripples your fighting ability later in the game.
Note: Each time you summon a callin, your callin timer goes up by a couple of seconds. As your units only spawn once the timer has counted down, this can be problematic with callin timers nearly a minute in length by the end of hour-long games. Delays this long might prevent you from stopping or countering units, and may cost you the game. Always be considerate of what you need on the field and keep your callin timers in the back of your mind.
3 - SCOUTING. Have at least 4 scouting units (Jeeps, Schwims, Bikes, Recon Tommies; anything with extended sight) in their own, separate callin slots. Scouting is THE single most powerful tool in Europe in Ruins. A wall of 88s is useless if you just walk to the end of the map where there are none.
Outro:Your company starts out with a set amount of resources; this is a limiting system and you will be refunded the full value of a unit if it's destroyed in battle, so remember to spend all of your resources. You'll further-refine your company building skills the more you experiment; use defeats in battle to inform your building and micro choices. Was your blob of Shrecks kited (outranged) by a series of Staghounds and Shermans? Invest in Paks, Marders, or some other form of long-ranged AT. Experience is a cruel mistress, but she is one you will unfortunately have to deal with during your starting days in Europe in Ruins.
