Posts made by saburo sakai

Well, I won’t comment on a Tournament game while it is underway, but I think you’re still quite a long way from forcing England and Russia to retreat to Moscow.

SS

@Jennifer:

Suicidal is a good word for it, but that game was already lost at that point, it was a hail mary attempt to knock the wind out of the allies for a turn so I could recover slightly.

Game 3497 Flames of Europe, I’m not trying anything radical.  Well, other then a 1 turn 100% armor build for Germany in Germany 5.  It’s my AAMC Tournament game. (their dicey doesnt play nice with IE 7.0 or Firefox.  Crashes a lot.)

If you can beat Atlantikwall in that game, kudos to you.  He’s one of the best AAR players anywhere.

SS

1.  As soon as I get internet up, Imma challenge saburo sakai!  meh heh heh heh.  Right now, I’m at work, so I can’t really download executables.  Oh wellz.  You down for that SS?

Yeah, but only if you’re willing to play at AAMC or FOE.  I really don’t like the PBF format.

SS

Well, if the choice is between anecdotal evidence of your “superior tactics” and the empirical evidence based on your record, I will rely on the record every time.

SS

Done:  http://www.boardgamegeek.com/geekforum.php3?action=viewforum&forumid=67&objectid=1262&objecttype=game

SS

“And if you screw up just this much, you’ll be flying a cargo plane full of rubber dog [crap] out of Hong Kong!”

James Tolkan, “Captain Stinger” to Tom Cruise, “Maverick” in Top Gun (1986)

Effective Use of CAP

Don’t worry.  While Maverick’s captain may have threatened him with cargo plane duty, no such penalty awaits you if you make a mistake while using CAP and by the time you’ve finished this essay you should be well on your way to using CAP as one of the tools for victory in AAPacific.

Combat Air Patrol (CAP) is a special feature of AAPacific that is not present in any of the other versions of Axis & Allies.  As such, for new players of AAPacific, CAP can cause some anxiety due to uncertainty with how to properly implement CAP for maximum advantage.Â

Let me start by saying that you can very easily play an entire AAPacific game and never use CAP.  In fact, you could probably play several games and never have ocassion to use CAP.  In most cases, you won’t suffer any adverse consequences from not taking advantage fo the CAP rules, but there are circumstances where carefully planned use of CAP can help either Japan or the Allies hold an advance position on the game board that would be a dead zone without the extra fighters that can be put in the air by the use of CAP.

Basic Rules of CAP

First, let’s talk about some of the basic features of CAP.  In order to effectively use CAP, it is important to know how it works.

-  CAP is launched during the Non-Combat Movement Phase using fighters from land territories.  CAP fighters cannot have moved or attacked during the Combat Movement phase.

-  CAP cannot be launched from Aircraft Carriers.

-  CAP cannot be launched into a sea zone where the presence of enemy units would result in combat (note: submerged submarines don’t count)

-  CAP fighters prevent enemy surface vessels from passing through the sea zone that they occupy.

-  CAP fighters must land during Phase 2 of your next turn.  They can land on any land territory adjacent to or within the sea zone they are occupying or on an Aircraft Carrier in the same sea zone.  Once the fighter lands, it can move as normal.

-  Airbases do not extend the range of CAP fighters.  The can only be launched into a sea zone that is adjacent to or surrounding the territory from which they start.  For example, a fighter on Formosa cannot fly CAP in sz38.  It can only fly CAP in sz45.

Sea Zones where CAP is most effective

Now that you understand how CAP works, we can discuss where CAP can be most effective.

For Japan, CAP will be most useful in sz45 or 46 early in the game and in sz38 late in the game.

For the Allies, CAP is most effective in szs29, 32, and sometimes 28.

Use of CAP by Japan

In a VP game, by J2, Japan is usually busy capturing the last of the Pacific Islands and moving as many ground units as possible to reinforce French IndoChina.  At the same time, it is important for Japan to have a strong presence in sz28 to discourage the Allies from advancing too quickly into the Central Pacific and taking away the IPCs Japan needs to maintain 4 VPs per turn until at least J4.  This means that Japan will often have to split its forces, with most of the fighting ships needed in sz28 and most of the transports needed to ferry ground units to FIC.  While the sz28 force is usually strong enough to withstand any Allied attack, how can you protect those lonely transports in sz45 or sz46.  The answer is CAP.

On J2 (and J3) combat movement phases, make sure that you have at least one fighter on J2 and preferably two fighters on J3 in FIC that you will not use during Combat.  During J2 or J3 NCM, move all of your transports that are ferrying troops to FIC into either sz45 or sz46 and launch the fighter(s) from FIC into that sea zone.  On J2, the US can attack with, at most 1 Ftr and 2 Bmrs.  With 5 or 6 transports, 1 DD and 1 Ftr, the odds of the US killing all your transports is not good.  Likewise, on J3, with 2 ftrs in the sea zone, the US would likely use up all of its airforce killing transports and leave the Japanese fighters untouched while greatly reducing its own offensive punch.  In most cases, the US player will not take the risk.  CAP fighters have permitted you to accomplish two things at once, namely, have a strong presence in sz28 while still effectively transferring ground units to FIC without exposing your transports to excessive risk.

Later in the game, Japan will be forced back to sz38 and must hold there as long as possible to ensure that it maintains 3 and then 2 VPs for as many turns as it can.  With only 4 ACs at its disposal, a maximum of 8 fighters can defend in the sea zone without using CAP.  To hold off the Allies (and the US in particular), CAP launched from the Philippines can be a particularly effective tactic.Â

By J4 and J5, Japan is running out of targets that it can safely attack with its air force.  By this time a direct assault on the combined Allied fleet is usually not favourable to Japan.  Often, Japan is left with picking off single allied ships (usually transports or subs) that are floating around in front of the main body of the Allied fleet.  As such, there are plenty of fighters that can be held back from combat in the Philippines.  On NCM, Japan can launch these fighters into sz38 and greatly enhance the defensive power of the sz38 fleet.  I once had 5 CAP fighters in sz38 along with 8 on ACs for a total of 13 defending fighters, along with 4 ACs, 3 BBs, a few transports, a DD and a couple of subs.  The Allies couldn’t touch that fleet all because the defensive strength was enhanced with CAP fighters.

Use of CAP by Allies

The Allies can also make good use of CAP to push their fleet forward in the face of what would otherwise be overwhelming Japanese strength.  As the game starts, the US has 2 ACs and 7 fighters on the east side of the map.  The UK adds a further three fighters and no ACs.  Usually, the Midway fighter will die in the J1 assault leaving the Allies with 9 fighters and only 2 ACs.  Sometimes the UK will purchase an AC but not always.  With this relative abundance of fighters and a shortage of flattops, how are the Allies supposed to accumulate sufficient defensive strength to discourage a Japanese attack on the Allied fleet early in the game?

Essentially, there are two options.  First, the Allies can hang back and build up enough strength in ACs and Destroyers to counter the Japanese force.  Unfortunately, this is a losing strategy because all Japan needs to do to win is buy time.  If the Allies don’t press forward as soon as possible, Japan wins be default.  Second, (and not surprisingly, given the topic of this essay), the Allies can use CAP fighters.

At the end of Allies 1, if all has gone well, the US and UK will have a fleet in sz14 that includes most of the starting naval units from the east half of the board.  In addition, the Allies will have dumped at least 3 UK and probably 2 US fighters into Queensland.  This defends against a Japanese attack of Australia and positions the Allied forces for early movement into the Central Pacific.  Here’s where the CAP comes in.

If the Japanese fleet can be forced out of sz28 for fear of an attack by the US on US2, the combined Allied fleet can be moved to sz32 or sz29 and the five fighters from Queensland can be launched into that sea zone as CAP.  In conjunction with 4 US fighters on the 2 US ACs and with blocking units to prevent a direct assault by the mass of the IJN, the Allied fleet is able to push forward where it could not go if the CAP fighters were not available.

Another possible location for CAP is in sz28.  If Japan has not positioned itself to take Papua with sufficient strength on J2 (sometimes because of a failure to take Midway or New Britain), the Allies can move fighter reinforcements to Papua on Allies 1.  Combined with a 9 Sub buy on US1, the Allies can make sz28 an impregnable maritime fortress on Allies 2 by moving its entire fleet, including the 9 new US subs to sz28 and by lauching up to five CAP fighters from Papua.  This will result in a defensive force that either cannot be safely attacked by Japan or will cause so much damage to the IJN that Japan will not be able to recover for the rest of the game.

In summary, CAP is not a game breaking strategy but it can be an effective part of a player’s arsenal in AAPacific.

Saburo Sakai

I can’t believe that it has been more than 3 months since I promised an essay on the Effective use of CAP and I have not yet got around to writing it.  I will do so shortly and my current plan is to complete my series of essays with a total of 4 more:

1.  Effective Use of CAP
2.  J1 Disasters and How to Recover
3.  the 4 VP J1 and how to counter it.
4.  Kill India Only and how to survive it.

I will not sleep until these are done.

Sorry to my legions of fans (I mean it… both of you… I’m sorry) for the long delay!

SS

You know Jen, you keep putting out all of this stuff about how screwed up players like Dan and I are in our strategy analysis.  Yet when I look over at DAAK…
I am ranked 13th with a record of 26 and 8
Dan is ranked 52nd with a record of 2 and 1
You are ranked 80th with a record of 3 and 11
Now… which of us have a better tactical/strategic grasp of the game as it is played? Â

Jen talks a good game, but, with all due respect, she can’t back it up with her play.  At AAMC, she’s only completed one AAR game (which she lost).  At Flames of Europe, she has played 23 AAR games and won only 7.  She is ranked 199 of 217 ranked players (as of March 6, 2007).  Her 7 wins have come against two players, rainynite (ranked #213) - 4 wins and uboot (ranked #214) - 3 wins.  It doesn’t look like she has ever beaten a player ranked above her in the rankings.

How much can you blame dicey?  If after playing dozens of games, you have a winning percentage of no better than 33% and you can only beat the lowest ranked players, you should face reality and admit that you’re not much of a player.

By the way, I am ranked 16th at FOE in AAR with a record of 14-3.  At AAMC, I am ranked 5th out of active players with a record of 11-5 (a lot more 2nd Edition games played at AAMC).  At AA.org, I’ve played only one game, which I lost.

And, to more directly respond to the UK transport issue, 3 is clearly not enough.  You need 4 for most of the early part of the game.  Often, when UK income has grown past the 32 mark, I will build a UK IC in Norway and build 3 infantry or armor there each turn.  The UK doesn’t need a large air force.  3 ftrs and a bmr are good enough for most purposes.  The US can build a large air force if it is needed to counter the Japanese fleet or bolster the defence of Russia.

SS

Well, like I said, you can do whatever you want here, but the matter is settled at AAMC.  In 2nd Edition, transports can load in a hostile sea zone.

SS

Actually, I do have a reference.  Please review 1.24 in the AAMC FAQ:  http://aamc.net/bunker/forumsql/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=64

This portion of the FAQ was prepared by Blackwatch, who is the Rules guru/JAG for AAMC and IAAPA.  These two clubs, at least, play by this rule.

In addition, at page 16 of the rule book, it reads as follows:

"A transport can pick up cargo, move 1 or 2 sea zones, and unload the cargo all in the same move.  THE CARGO CAN BE PICKED UP BEFORE, DURING OR AFTER THE TRANSPORT MOVES. For example, a transport could pick up 1 infantry, move 1 zone and pick up another infantry, move into another zone and unload both infantry all in the same move."  [Emphasis in original]

There is nothing in the rule book that says a transport cannot load as a result of the presence of enemy ships.Â

In contrast, this is what the rule book for AAEurope says:  “You many not load or unload land units on a transport ship
in a sea zone that contains enemy units. If the transport moves into a friendly or empty sea zone, it may load or unload troops.”

And this is what the LHTR rule book says:  “At any point during the combat move phase, a transport may load or offload land units (Exception: a transport may never load units if it is in a hostile sea zone).”

You can agree that for games played at A&A.org that you cannot load units in a hostile sea zone in 2nd Edition games, but this is contrary to the way the game is played in other clubs.

SS

Actually, in 2nd Edition, a transport can load units in a hostile sea zone.  So, this would be a valid move.  The BB and Trn move from BAR to NOR, the arm is loaded on the Trn, the naval battle is fought and if the battle is successful, the armor can be unloaded into Norway as an amphibious assault.

This move would not be legal in AAR, AAE or AAP because transports cannot load in a hostile sea zone, which is what NOR is at the start of the turn.

SS

@ericajordan:

So anyone ever meet this Jennifer?  Close up?

She hot or what?  Worth going to Cinninati to meet?

Never met her in person, but I hear she’s a hot star fighter pilot:  http://swe.starwarsclub.org/darkjedi/gm_files/[O]4DC-4DA-3DSJennifer Christman.htm

SS

@Jennifer:

All I can say, JSP, is that ABattlemap > MapView.Â

I hate, no, I despise, no, wait, I’d rather Kiss Hillary Roddham Clinton full on the lips then use MapView again.  Actually, I’d gladley do that, there’s nothing I can say to get you to fully conceptualize my loathing of MapView.  It’s hard to read, the pieces blend into the background unless you are full offense, it doesn’t auto-update land total, doesn’t track army/navy size, easy to conceal enemy units makig it hard to keep track of where they are, it’s cumbersome to stack/unstack units, it’s all but impossible to make sure you got everything you wanted done.  Let alone getting all the arrows up so your opponent can even attempt to understand what you are trying to do.

Battlemap, simple.  Mouse navigatable, stacking/unstacking a simple matter of 1 key plus left click.  Notepad allows you to quickly and effeciently type up and convey what you are doing and how you are doing it without giving your opponent a brain anerism trying to figure it out with silly arrows and green/yellow text on pieces.

Jen, you do Mapview a disservice.  It has features that make it much better to use than AABattlemap.  For instance, there is no need to write out combat movements, non combat movements or unit placements.  All that has to be recorded are the dice rolls and this is created in a dice log for most diceys.  I use both AABattlemap and Mapview and I am equally proficient in both.  One is not necessarily better than the other - they are simply different.

SS

Signups are now open for the 2007 AAMC AAR Lieutenant’s Tournament.  This Tournament is open to all new players of AARevised and those who have not previously obtained a ranking of 1425 or higher.  The Tournament starts March 26, 2007, so signup by March 25, 2007.  http://aamc.net/bunker/forumsql/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=180

Saburo Sakai
AAMC Commander of Tournaments

If you follow the links, you will see the details for the rules.  Kremlin gives you all kinds of options to start the game.  Things like early landings in WAfrica, having Turkey, Switzerland or other neutrals starting the game as your ally, adding a battleship to the South Atlantic for Germany and many, many more.  It can completely change the playout of the game and because the restricted Tech rules, Technology will likely not play as bid a role as it can in regular 2nd Edition games.  Give it a try and you’ll see that it makes the game a very different one.

SS

@DarthMaximus:

15!   :-o

The most I’ve had was 4, but that was only one time.  I’ve done 3 at once a few times before, but I’ve found that tended to be more like a job and I would have less fun.  I like trying to do turns every night, so with 3 games it easily chewed up 2-3 hrs a night and took some of the fun out it.

Now I like 1-2 games at a time.

I can usually run through turns in all of my games in about 3 or 4 hours.  Of course, not all of my opponents play every day, so I don’t have to do turns in 14 games all at once.  Right now, I “owe” a turn in only 1 of my games.  That might go up to 5 or 6 if I get really busy at work or I’m travelling.

SS

@mojo:

SS that is just nutts how can you keep track of 15 games at one time. i’m like switch the actual board 1 game at a time, and i spend enough time thinking about that game, 15 would fry my brain even more.    :-P   i do own pacific i’d love to play that again sometime, i need to go buy europe.

It’s actually not that hard.  I use map programs for all of my games rathen than physical boards.  I have a pretty good memory and I can actually picture the board of each game in my head (ok, I’m not quite so good with AAEurope).  When I’m writing out my NCM, I usually don’t even have to look at the map to write it all down.  Then, I switch back to the map and verify all the moves.

Since A&A is a turn-based game, you really just need to look at the board as it stands to do you next turn.  You don’t have to worry about what went on in the past and you can always see patterns developing for future rounds from the current state of the board.  Actually, one of the advantages of playing many games is that your play is usually very flexible in each game.  Rarely do I get locked into a single strategy.  I react to the changes in the game as the game progresses.

SS

I have 14 games going on right now.  10 at AAMC and 4 at FOE.  This includes A&A 2nd Edition, AARevised, AAPacific and AAEurope.  The most I ever had going at one time was probably around 20 but if I get less then about 8, I start to get twitchy from withdrawal.

SS

Correction.  I have 15 games going on right now.  I forgot about an AAPacific game I’ve got going at Days of Infamy where I’ve been waiting for my opponents turn for about a week.

Signups are now open for the 2007 AAMC 2nd Edition Kremlin Tournament.  If you have never played this variant before, you will find that it puts an interesting twist on the classic 2nd Edition.  The tournament starts March 12, 2007 so signup soon!

The signup thread is here:  http://aamc.net/bunker/forumsql/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=157

If you’re not interested in Kremlin, check out our full schedule of other tournaments:  http://aamc.net/bunker/forumsql/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=13

Saburo Sakai
AAMC Commander of Tournaments

Trns cannot fire at passing fighters, even if they are carrying an AA gun.  Transports do defend on a “1” but only if the attacker is stopping in the sea zone occupied by the Transport, not if the planes are just flying over.

SS