Hey everyone!
As espected of UK1, Taranto was launched against the Italian fleet. UK won easily with (remaining troops)
AC
2 Fighters
1 Cruiser
On his turn, Italian decided to send everything it had against the fleet in SZ 97, with the goal of attacking Greece.
2 fighter
1 bomber
1 sub
1 destroyer
1 cruiser
Not only did Italy lose the naval battle, but it lost its entire army except for 1 bomber… All Italy managed to accomplish is a single dice roll, killing a cruiser.
Naturally, Battle of Greece failed, leaving only 1 tank retreating. A weakened Yougoslavia (2 inf left) still managed to score hits on the Italian army… And the attack on Tunisia also backfired, with the single French killing two Italians.
Basically, everything that could go wrong, went wrong.
So… should the Axis surrender? Keep playing? Germany had a pretty lucky G1 killing most of the English boats without losing its subs/battleship, so luck seems to be wild in our game.
Germany could attempt some unfavourable battles on G2 and see if luck can come back to our side / turn the tide of the battle…
I’m not saying that Italy wasn’t diced badly, but Italy for me is not really a big factor. I’ve played many games where Taranto works well for the Allies and all I use Italy for is can-opening in the East. And buying some inf for reinforcements on the West after turn 3-4. The Allies can’t really invade yet, but you will have to eliminate their Med force to add time to that invasion schedule. As long as the Germans keep up pressure, Italy can languish.
@surfer : Given Italy’s luck, would you consider doing risky G2? Or play it standard and hope that luck evens out eventually?
What do you mean “risky G2?” DOW Russians? Attempt Sealion? Excessively aggressive air assault on many targets?
If Germany is solid, you can expect that the dice should even out.
I would wipe out the remaining Allied fleet on G2. Chances are that you lose 2 of of your planes which isn’t great but is very manageable. If you get totally diced and lose 4 or 5 German planes, it might be a sign that the dice gods are against you and you might want to restart.
You are a tad bit behind a “normal” opening, but if you still have that bomber and some fast movers, Italy can clear the way into Russian territory. Just make sure that Rome is not lost and you have done your job. Germany can eventually capture Greece without much loss. The game will go on. It is easy to make up the lost ground if the Allies make any small mistake like miscalculating a fleet battle in the Pacific.
The only times that I restart early game is if I get totally diced in France and lose all of my German fast movers that are so necessary to pressure Russia later on. Hard to recover from that swing.
