I have to concur with the others who have posted. A combined transport and infantry build for Japan on turn 1 is the way to go. If Russia took Manchuria on round 1, and if the UK executed the “Kwangtung Maneuver”, the only place left for Japan to build is Southeast Asia. While initially it MIGHT be safe (the US can take that factory using China and Sinkiang forces one time in 3, and later will threaten it with a southern island hoping fleet), it is too far from Russia to do any good, and forward progress against Russia proper is easilly blocked by Novosibirsk infantry units. Japan HAS to focus on gaining IPC’s in round 1 in order to sustain a transport invasion of Russia through the back door (Manchuria to Yakut to Novosibirsk to Russia). Also, as Japan builds a transport navy (protect by heavy naval forces that were NOT sacrificed against the US at Hawaii) the US has to garrison Alaska heavilly (that japanease transport fleet ferrying troops to Manchuria is a single move away from an all out invasion of Alaska too). That reduces the number of US dollars that can be spent on the European war, allowing Germany to maintain the frontal assault on Russia that eventually leads to Japan taking Russia. So for an opening move, Japan re-takes Manchuria, takes Australia, blasts the results of the Kwantung Maneuver (if executed) or takes China using air force and Kwantung infantry. If Japan still holds Manchuria, they assault Yakut and take it. If the UK builds in India, that simply takes more pressure off Germany and allows THEM to take Russia, aided by the threat floating through the Siberian lands… too far from India for UK to do a darn thing about. YAKUT is the key for Japan. Take it and hold it, you have one territory with all of your west-marching forces to defend it from the Russians, and you force Russia to try to defend TWO territories against your massing forces. The drain on Russia: defending Evenk AND Novosibirsk plus holding Karelia and the Caucuses with an income of only 20 or so IPC’s is FATAL, REGARDLESS of UK and US support. And with Russia gone, the Alllies WILL lose (economic victory is immediate on taking Russia, world domination only a few moves away)
What should Japan attack.
-
I am confused that Japan should attack Hawaii first or Midway first. Cause everytime me and my friends play I always attack onw of those 2 first and it backfires.
Cause_Effect Chart
Hawaii- If I attack Hawaii, he counters me and attacks the Phillipines.
Midway- If I attack Midway, he counters me and attacks solomon Island. -
Just kill the Sub, Carrier and ftr in the Haw SZ. Bring a lot of firepower. You should have enough left over to be a counterattack deterrent.
Most of the Jpn spending should be used on trn + inf for the drive to Rus anyway.
-
It takes a while for the allies to attack the Phillipines.
-
what i usually do, in j1, is pearl with a sub 2 fighters a carrier and a battlleship, attack alaska with 2 inf with transport from japan(only if the inf from eastern canada was not sent to alaska), send transport from philipines and remaining battleship to australia, and use bomber and the gang from kwantung to take out china, if by chance the russians haven combined their forces in the east then i attack yakut ssr or soviet far east with gang from manchuria and a few fighters
-
Usually what I do is just destroy the US Navy off HI. I generally don’t invade it until later in the game, all land forces and most of the aircraft are needed for the push towards Moscow. The reason to destroy the US Navy to to establish dominance for Japan in the Pacific (and somewhat reduce the US ability in the Atlantic later in the game). If the US wants to play games in the Pacific after this, thats fine with me - less Germany has to worry about and Japan will have the upper hand in this battle unless the US puts everything it has into the Pacific theater (probably a win for Germany :D ).
Generally, as the US I will try to retreat my remaining W. coast Navy to the Atlantic, or if the battle went my way I might counter-attack HI (there are other rare options I won’t discuss here), but do no more in the Pacific. I want to get to Europe ASAP to keep Germany (and Japan) from overwhelming Russia as this is usually the game make/break play.
-
I posted an article on Japan’s opening move you might find interesting.
-
The answer to your question about Midway and Hawaii is NEITHER!
Take that carrier, battleship, sub, and your Phillipine transport and attack Australia. It is worth double Hawaii in IPC’s, is impossible for the US to immediately counter-attack, and really helps the Germans by weakening the UK. That south pacific fleet then is in a position to strike India if needed and then to Africa; or take New Zealand and then move to Panama or around Cape Horn to Brazil. With a transport build for Japan to start a steady invasion of Russia’s siberian territories (one that can also reach Alaska, or Midway, or Hawaii in a single move), it makes the US have to consider TWO Japanease fleets, not one.
So don’t make the same mistake Japan did in the real war. Attack Russia, and set your two fleets to post a simultaneous threat on 5 US territories, as well as being positioned to pincer ANY US counter-strike in the central Pacific with BOTH Japanease fleets!
-
While I haven’t really thought of it that way, I totaly agree with ncscswitch. However my reason is that not only do you help germany by weakening the uk, but if the US decides to try and build a navy to defeat japan you are pulling valuable resorces away from the atlantic, while japan is still quite capable of taking russia and defending its waters at the same time.
-
Allow me to clarify,
Japan’s naval forces need only prevent the Americans from taking Japan.
They still need at least 4 transports to ship inf to the mainland for the drive on Rus.
Taking any Allied islands should be considered a luxury move. Do it after critical territories are secured.
Sending transports and marines to take any island territory or Australia before mainland forces reach Novo will be counterproductive to the Axis cause.
Jpn can establish Pacific naval dominance with an overwhelming attack on US naval forces by Haw. That should suffice on most games.
-
Taking any Allied islands should be considered a luxury move. Do it after critical territories are secured.
Not quite. The question of whether to attack Australia depends on what the Russians did in round 1. IF Russia is making a strong Asian stand (ie: if the Russian fighter was sent on the Manchurian attack and/or if 2 or more Russian INF were sent east in round 1) then I would agree with you: Pull all Japan forces back to Japan proper, assault Manchuria with so much overwhelming force that Russia is basically totally defeated in the east, then move toward Moscow as described elsewhere.
However, if Russia did not attack Manchuria at all, or if their attack forces were not at maximum strength, or if Russia sent all available forces west to defend Karelia, then you do not have to send EVERYTHING against Russia. In fact, “wasting” both battleships sitting in home waters is counter-productive to Japan’s openning strength: navy.
Remember, the US has to stage forward to attack Japan, or any navy around Japan. That means that Western US navy has to move to Hawaii (or Midway, or Wake, or SOMEWHERE forward of California) one round before it can attack Japan’s home waters (and that transport fleet you started building in round 1). Japan has more than enough initial air power to counter any Round 1 US attack, and then you simply re-start building that transport fleet and move the Australian navy back toward home waters. And if the US does stage forward, then the TWO Japan fleets pincer it, destroy it, and then keep building their transports to attack Russia and threaten Midway, Hawaii, and Alaska.
Suggested Topics
