» Fri May 04, 2012 4:10 pm I can quote Sun Tzu too. And my quote will actually be relevant to the discussion rather than just more pointing out that Oliver is not a particularly good general. "Should the enemy strengthen his van, he will weaken his rear, should he strengthen his rear; he will weaken his van, should he strengthen his left, he will weaken his right; should he strengthen his right, he will weaken his left. If he sends reinforcements everywhere, he will everywhere be weak."
Oliver knows the one place the Legion will attack in force. It is the one place where he knows Caesar will commit to a stand-up battle that can determine the entire campaign. So he correctly concentrates everyone he can spare there while risking less important positions rather than scattering troops all over the Mojave to respond to minor Legion attacks.
Choosing not to fight at the Dam because it's close quarters would be incredibly stupid. As for the Dam being "close quarters" what? Most of the fighting takes place either on top of the Dam or in those wide-open power plant rooms. There's relatively little fighting in the cramped corridors.
Oliver knows the one place the Legion will attack in force. It is the one place where he knows Caesar will commit to a stand-up battle that can determine the entire campaign. So he correctly concentrates everyone he can spare there while risking less important positions rather than scattering troops all over the Mojave to respond to minor Legion attacks.
Choosing not to fight at the Dam because it's close quarters would be incredibly stupid. As for the Dam being "close quarters" what? Most of the fighting takes place either on top of the Dam or in those wide-open power plant rooms. There's relatively little fighting in the cramped corridors.
The power plants aren't heavily defended. Oliver is spreading his forces across the power plant and is caught off guard. The intake tunnels are an access point for Legionaries, probably hundreds. Not to mention, the power plant fighting is too sudden and vicious for snipers to take point, which is one of the main reasons why the Legion lost the first battle.
What do you mean minor Legion attacks? Forlorn Hope falls. McCarran is struck hard by the monorail bomb and the Fiends. Novac falls. Omertas try to destroy the Embassy. Camp Golf gets annihilated. A nice chunk of the area, including the Ranger LEADER, falls to the Legion. NCR has quite a bit of resources. Oliver is sacrificing a good chunk of them to hold the Dam when there are better options.
It's not that Oliver is fighting at the Dam, it's that his strategy is terrible. Just hurling NCR bodies at the Legion hoping he lasts longer isn't a strategic fight. It's a gamble. Not to mention: Oliver doesn't listen to Hanlon. He basically ignores the Rangers (in lore) until they finally show up after Kimball's speech. He cares so much for his precious Heavy Troopers and ignores that the Rangers are far more effective, especially in close quarters.
