I definitely agree with the other opinions. Their losses will outweigh yours, and buy you valuable time in which Japan will be killing Russia. Once Russia is out of the picture, you’re golden.
If the game has already finished, I’m sure we would all love to know how it went for you! ^^
Japan is one of my favorite powers to play, so I’m going to throw in a few of my suggestions. But please keep me honest guys. If I give some bad advise, I’d appreciate it if you’d point it out to me.
So I have been playing a lot of Axis lately and there is plenty of strategy regarding the Axis but I’m lacking in specific Japanese strategy. I generally go with transports for J1 and maybe a destroyer or more infantry. I attack the US fleet in Hawaii, push into Russia in whatever way best goes with whatever they did. And I attack China.
This sounds a lot like how I generally handle J1. The China attack is a must for me: I do NOT allow the Americans to get a foothold on the mainland. I also love putting pressure on the North-Eastern Russian territories as early as possible. More money for Japan, less money for Russia. If India has been left alone, I’ll always launch an attack there, and do my best to hold it on J1. The sooner you start stunting the Allies economies and putting yourself in position to attack Russia, the better.
I do find myself disagreeing with your choice of building a destroyer. Generally, you start off with enough navy in the Pacific to sustain you. A destroyer purchase seems like a waste of money that you could use to build up your assault force going onto the mainland.
Now here come the questions! Should I be looking to attack Australia J1? And India as well? I like the IC on Manchuria for J2 but should I be looking to put it in Kwangtung instead? Or somewhere else for that matter? Or not at all?
It isn’t possible to take Australia J1, but you should try to take it as soon as it becomes convenient for you. Once again, more IPCs for Japan and less for Britain. Also, it’s one less place for them to potentially build an IC to harass you.
I do generally go with the India attack early on. Just be careful if they’ve left it defended. You don’t want to leave yourself TOO spread out. That being said, Britain generally isn’t in good position to reinforce/take back India, so I see it as a worthwhile attack on J1.
As IC purchases go… I would suggest holding off on building them on J1, and building transports instead. Then you can shuffle troops straight from Japan into the North-Eastern Russia area. You’ll be getting more troops over for cheaper.
I.E., all of the mainland Asia countries have an IPC value of 3. An IC costs 15 IPCs, and you can build 3 units from it per turn.
Building two transports costs 14 IPCs (7 each), and allows you to shuffle 4 units over to the mainland per turn for one IPC cheaper. Plus, you can use the transports for other purposes later in the game. Seems like a pretty obvious choice to me.
Aside from this, I would recommend building an IC in India on J2 if things have gone well. If not, build it in French Indo-China, although this is much less desirable.
My overall idea is to ship my guys off their islands into Asia and supplement my navy to maintain control of the Pacific. Thus the main focus is Russia and the two US territories. I have, however, seen strategies involving Japan moving its fleet into the Med and taking over Africa. What kind of navy do you build to bring over there? Do you place another IC in Africa for better access to Europe?
I don’t think I could condone moving Japan’s fleet into the Med. It would be too expensive to maintain, and it would leave Japan vulnerable in the Pacific to the U.S. I also don’t think an IC in Africa is worth it, as most of the African countries are only worth 1 IPC. Your production would be far to slow. With Japan, I always stand by this statement: KILL THE RUSSIANS.
Lastly, I have tried to take over the US before. It is not possible, in any realistic scenario I could think of. Do I just completely ignore them or go for Midway and Hawaii and a small stack off the shore of Midway?
Aside from the occasional harassment of Alaska to keep the U.S. on its toes, I generally ignore America unless they threaten to attack me. And chances are, if they’re threatening to attack me, they’re not applying enough pressure in Europe, and Germany will be thriving, and THEY’LL manage to take out Russia.
I hope I answered your questions in a satisfactory and intelligent manner. =)
First off, I would like to thank everyone for their responses. I have learned a great deal from each of you, and I appreciate your time very much.
I don’t have time to reply to every single post made since I last checked in, but do know that I HAVE read every post here, so your work hasn’t gone to waste.
Now, there are a few specific posts I had questions on…
Some knowledgable people have offered some really sound advice. Just a few things to think about.
If the allies split their atlantic fleet then each fleet has to defend against the same resources. If you add 1 bomber, the allies have to add enough to both fleets to ensure an attack is not worth while.
Germany requires mostly infantry in the first few rounds. The allies generally will not have more than 4 transports for each of Britain and the US. So initially it is a challenge to cover all your bases, but as your stack grows, their threat decreases as most likely, the allies won’t build extra transports and withhold units from the mainland just to impose a greater risk of a larger amphibious landing. By replacing infantry with tanks in western europe you can move up the slower units first, then as mentioned, move up and threaten Russia.
Hmmm… interesting point here. So, it’s your opinion that the allies will be loathe to build enough transports to counter a stacked infantry defense in Germany, if I read that correctly? To me, it seems that a stacked infantry defense with support from the Japanese air force is vastly superior to a tank defense with Germany…
Stacked infantry is much more cost effective, you’re right. The reasoning for using tanks and fighters, primarily starting units, is their mobility. German tanks in one move go from defense in Western Europe to offense in Eastern Europe while Germany’s infantry builds can go primarily east so when Germany makes the lurch forward, they are much more threatening. If the Axis game plan is a constant defense in Western Europe, than infantry and planes are all you’ll need in Western Europe and any tanks can go to Eastern Europe. Tanks are only good defending Western Europe if Germany is a) deadzoning Eastern Europe or b) planning to abandon Western Europe to go after Russia.
I definitely have to agree with you here… wasting tanks on Western Europe just doesn’t make a huge amount of sense in my mind. Infantry are cheap enough to stack that Germany should have plenty of money left to pressure Russia on the Eastern front. Especially if Japan is doing it’s job and eating Russia’s economy alive from the East.
Germany can swiftly overrun Africa if the US response is weak/Germany gets multiple transports. Japan is also in a position to take India or Australia + NZ swiftly, but I don’t think it’s possible for the Axis to invade GB and win. Japan is too isolated and has to deal with the US superior IPC collection and possible Russian aggression if Germany allows Russia to go unchecked. Apart from ridiculous luck, the only plausible way for Axis to kill Britian is if Germany kills Africa and Japan takes India before the US response. Germany would need a lot of Battleships and Cruisers for shore bombardment and I don’t see how they could amass enough IPCs while leaving Russia alone. But this is coming from a novice at 1942 (I just bought 1942 recently, been playing A&A on my computer for years)
Hmmm… perhaps you are right. There DO seem to be many problems with a Kill Great Britain First strategy. I suppose it was my thought that Japan would go aggressive on the mainland and distract Russia/cripple Britain’s economy, leaving Germany with an economic advantage that would allow them to easily take Britain and Africa. I guess it was wishful thinking on my part.
@Fleetwood:
Hobbes beat me to it. He’s giving solid advice, the G1 bomber is a good tactic that will often prevent the Allies from meeting at z8 on round 1 and slowing the Allies down a full turn.
The one point I differ on is defending Western Europe with tall infantry stacks and the Luftwaffe. If Germany does this, the Allies will have her separated from Russia too soon. The alternative is to defend Western Europe in the opening rounds with the Luftwaffe, minimal infantry, and however many tanks it takes to deter attack. Then when Germany has a chance to advance on the Soviets, they can shift the units in Western Europe east. In one turn, the tanks and fighters go from defending Western Europe to threatening a move on Caucuses/West Russia adding to Russia’s problems with Japan.
Hmmm… but by moving your forces out of Western Europe, won’t that cause the allies to move into Western Europe and leave Germany vulnerable? Although I DO see the benefit in the extra threat on Russia.
Moving out of WE does invite a landing on Western Europe. That’s the sacrifice made to continue to press Russia from the West. The Allies should only land a small amount to collect for Western Europe. Germany should maintain Western Europe as a deadzone so a large landing would not be a good idea for the Allies. It does not leave Germany vulnerable as long as Germany itself is defended.
I do see your point. And with Russia out of the way, it would be rather simple to turn your forces around and take back (and hold) Western Europe. However, would a stacked infantry defense not be cheaper than a defense with more fighters and tanks, which would allow for more building elsewhere?
@Fleetwood:
Probably all the vets of Revised and Spring 42 will agree on the necessity of taking Egypt G1. BUT, a complex there is folly. That’s 15 IPC’s spent just to be able to place units in Egypt. Then there’s the continued commitment to Egypt of probably 6-10 IPC’s/turn. German income is likely in the low 40’s and with those investments, Russia may get out of hand and certainly won’t be on her heels. Meanwhile, the Allies can overwhelm Germany’s measly two units/turn. It’s not uncommon to see ~8 US units march through Northern Africa on a given turn. Holding Egypt as long as possible is a smart goal to have but a complex is not the way to do it. Conserve Germany’s units in Africa, land more units there while the med ships are still afloat. Have Japan reinforce with troops and fighters. A complex will do more harm than good and the Allies can certainly crack Egypt before losing Russia.
Hmmm… I can definitely see your point there. You ARE right. It is impossible for Germany to hold Egypt long enough with an IC for Japan to take Russia. I agree with you here. I wouldn’t advise the IC in Egypt.
On G1 you should buy 1 bomber and attack the UK Battleship + Transport on SZ2, landing the German fighter and bomber afterwards on Norway. You should also kill the UK Cruiser on SZ13 with 2 German fighters and move the 2 subs to SZ7. This should remove any substantial Allied threat of amphibious landings since the UK will have to rebuilt its navy and keep it away from the German planes and submarines.
Hmmmm… mmkay. I think I see what you’re saying. What do you generally recommend doing with the German Battleship? Keeping it where it is to protect your transport shuffling troops through to Africa?
You can’t really stop the Allies from landing on Algeria but if you keep adding infantry to Western Europe (I usually get up to 12 by round 4 or 5) plus basing the German airforce there you’ll be able to prevent the Allies from ever taking it, with a little help of the Japanese. And as a side bonus the UK won’t be able to collect income from W.Eur, which will slow down its naval buildup.
Definitely agree with you were. I make the mistake of building too many tanks early on as Germany, and underestimating the defensive firepower of the infantry. So basically, I should continue adding infantry to Western Europe, and move any available fighters to that location? Do you recommend building any additional fighters as Germany early on?
If the US sets its fleet off SZ12 and threatens to take S. Europe, let them have it. The US/UK will be splitting their efforts, making it easier to defeat their landings. The drawback of losing S. Eur is that you’ll be limited to buying 10 units, and G will have to buy as many infantry as possible to fortify W.Eur and keep an eye on the Russians.
As for the Japanese, I usually send their entire airforce to Europe, through Egypt or carriers parked on SZ34. Then they can work great to defend Fortress Europe: since J plays between UK/US the planes can be used to either reinforce the defenses on W.Eur/S.Eur/Germany or even sink the UK fleet if the UK player gets careless (which can be a game winner for the Axis). Again the drawback is that the Japanese advance to Russia will be costly but at the same time Russia is busy against Japan and not helping the Allies landing on Eastern Europe.
Hmm… you would recommend giving the U.S. Southern Europe? That would seem like a major threat to me… will Germany have the power to retake and defend that?
Unless the Allied player is completely careless or crazy it is impossible to take Britain with Germany. The UK can simply drop a bunch of infantry on each turn with further reinforcements from the US. You’d need to take complete control of the Atlantic and somehow avoid Russia from overrunning Europe.
You have an excellent point here. Would you stand by this statement even if the Allies were going for a KJF strategy?
Build tons of infantry with Germany (with the 1-2 tanks) for the first 3 turns. Fortify W. Europe with Germany as above (but don’t send the Japanese planes) while massing a big infantry stack on E. Europe. Then switch to all tank production and go take Caucasus from the Russians and eventually Russia. Or move your stack to Karelia to prevent UK landings to reinforce Russia and keep your income in the 40s until you can safely move the unit stack to West Russia without fear of the Russians killing it.
With Japan you should always buy 3 transports + 1 DD as usual for J1. Japan will only know if the US is going Pacific until US1 so there’s not much you can do about it until then. If they are going after Japan, then you will need more destroyers, specially if the US is building a lot of submarines. You should only buy 1 IC and for Indochina and usually only after turn 2 or 3, otherwise invest on at least 1 plane or submarine per turn.
The best route for the US is to take Solomon and be in position to hit Japan/East Indies/Borneo/Phillipines. If it does so, move 1 DD to SZ51 to block access to Japan (if necessary) and move your fleet to SZ48/49/36 to respond to any landings on those islands and retake them. Keep a close eye to the US fleet and airforce before leaving your fleet within range of US ships: it can be easy (and deadly) to underestimate the number of planes that can reach it.
Excellent advice here. I don’t have much to comment on. Thank you so much for the very detailed answer.
Hobbes beat me to it. He’s giving solid advice, the G1 bomber is a good tactic that will often prevent the Allies from meeting at z8 on round 1 and slowing the Allies down a full turn.
The one point I differ on is defending Western Europe with tall infantry stacks and the Luftwaffe. If Germany does this, the Allies will have her separated from Russia too soon. The alternative is to defend Western Europe in the opening rounds with the Luftwaffe, minimal infantry, and however many tanks it takes to deter attack. Then when Germany has a chance to advance on the Soviets, they can shift the units in Western Europe east. In one turn, the tanks and fighters go from defending Western Europe to threatening a move on Caucuses/West Russia adding to Russia’s problems with Japan.
Hmmm… but by moving your forces out of Western Europe, won’t that cause the allies to move into Western Europe and leave Germany vulnerable? Although I DO see the benefit in the extra threat on Russia.
I’m very new to this community, and I’m aware that this thread is a little old, but I sort of wanted to throw in my two cents.
1. No matter how Russia plays, be it aggressively or defensively, there is no way that they can defend themselves from both Germany AND Japan. Simply stall them with Germany. Send over enough units to keep them distracted, and to keep all their heavy units close to home. Meanwhile, Japan will be attacking their weak Eastern border, eating their way closer and closer to Moscow. Russia should easily crumble, even if they have been playing defensively.
2. I, personally, believe that it is a MUST to take Egypt first turn and build an industrial complex there as soon as possible. You can pump two units into Africa per turn from here. This, in my opinion allows you to easily combat a US advance into Africa. It’s more work for America to get into African than Germany at this point. And if all else fails, turtle up in Egypt and stall, while Japan finishes off Russia.
3. I do not see a complex in Western Europe as necessary. Three complexes in the German homeland is just a tad ridiculous. The complex in Germany should be enough.
4. I recommend being aggressive with Japan early on and taking China on your first turn. This will seriously discourage a U.S. player from building an Industrial Complex. And if they do, it will almost certainly fall to Japan on their second or third turn.
5. I usually don’t recommend an attack on the U.S. mainland before Russia has fallen. They will almost certainly push you out, and it seems to me that it’s just a waste of Japan’s money that SHOULD be going into attacking Russia.
Hello folks! I’m new to the community here, although I’ve been lurking around reading here for a few weeks. I think it’s been a major help with my Axis game. Generally, I play both Germany and Japan, while my three friends play the Allies (an odd way to play, but we all enjoy it.)
I generally play a Kill Russia First strategy, stalling with Germany on their Western border while Japan eats them alive from the east. It seems like I always have a problem with an Allied landing in Western Europe and the Western half of Africa though. So, my first question is, how do you counter this with Germany?
My second question is, is there an effective way for Germany to go about a Kill Britain First strategy? I was experimenting with this in my mind, and wondered if it would be viable to build transports bridging Germany with Britain, and investing in naval protection for it, bringing up the Mediterranean Battleship and the northern fleet to protect them also. With Germany’s economic advantage, it seems to me that they could succeed in destroying Britain, especially if you’re stealing their IPC’s in Africa. Are there any thoughts on a viable Kill Britain first strategy?
Also, what would you do as an Axis player if the U.S.A went full force in the Pacific, while Britain and Russia focused on Germany themselves? Is this a viable thread to the Axis players? How would you counteract this?
Thanks for your answers in advance.
