Fronts and offensives

At war your troops are not moved province by province. Against every enemy you touch by land you get a front: one pool of troops spread along the whole line of contact. Each week your staff covers every stretch, then puts the rest where an attack pays.

Stances

• Hold – no attacks, fewer losses, troops dig in.
• Advance – attack where the odds are good.
• Assault – attack everywhere: faster and much bloodier.

The line on the map

The front line runs along the border where the two sides meet: your side's edge in blue, the enemy's in red, each as thick as the troops standing there. When a province changes hands, the line rolls across it to its new place while the province takes on its new colour.

Along the line sit front chips, one per stretch. Each is a capsule across the line:

• The two sides. Each side shows its flag and its total troops on that stretch, allies included; your side is on the side your land lies.
• Allies. A small +n means other countries fight on that side.
• Balance. The bar along the chip's foot shows the balance of forces.
• The emblem on the line. Two bars mean the stretch is quiet; chevrons point at the side under attack.
• Momentum. A gold rim around the emblem fills with your momentum; a bolt means a blitz is ready.

Hover a chip and it opens: each side's name appears and its allies slide out under its flag, each with its troops. Click either side, yours or the enemy's, to open the front's card with that sector (both sides' troops there and who supplies them) and the enemy's stance, morale and earthworks. Chips of other wars open the country they belong to.

Offensives

Drag from your side of a chip onto enemy land: troops concentrate on that axis and the line bulges forward there. Drop it on another of your chips on the same front instead to move troops along the line. An attack at better than about 1 : 1 builds progress on the province across; at 100% it changes hands. Land cut off from its country is encircled and falls within weeks.

Defenders gain from terrain, forts (+25% per level) and earthworks.

Momentum and blitz

Every front builds momentum. It fills a little every week (more slowly while the front holds), faster when it takes ground and wins battles, and drains when it loses ground.

When the bar is full, the Blitz button lights up in the fronts list and on the front card. A blitz gives the front one week of attacks at ×1.55 strength and progress at ×1.9 speed; a front that was holding goes on the attack. The bar then starts again from empty. AI countries blitz too, and the enemy's card warns you when their momentum is building.

Reinforcements

Each front's card sets its share of new troops (low, normal or high) and sends your idle reserves to it.

With Auto-reinforce fronts (in the fronts list or in Military), fronts short of troops get new recruits every other week while the treasury can bear the cost. The recruits are raised on the line and sent straight there.