What to do with Japanese transport in Indian Ocean?

[Anonymous]

I have recently played a game where Britian built a factory in India.  I took it as Japan 1st round as the US and Russia did not help in defense of it with my transport and men from Philipines.  I also took China and the classic Pearl Harbor attack.  What do you think is the best move with this transport now?

What I chose to do is to take one inf. from India, pick up a second from Dutch East Indies, and attack Australia, with support from my remaining navy after Pearl Harbor.

Would it have been better to use the transport to help put troops in Africa instead?  Or should I have brought it back to Japan to help supply the push into Asia?

[Dirt Baller]

Take the transport to Africa and make some quick bucks while you can.  Australia can wait.  The Japan SZ will have 5 or more transports in no time anyway.  Your Pearl fleet should rendezvous with the African transport ASAP.  But if US rebuilds its Pacific fleet, park them in the Japan SZ.

[Xi]

Yup!

[Anonymous]

But at this point of the game, Germany still holds Africa (= no $ for Japan).  Maybe it makes sense to help reinforce Africa for Germany, or to take Madagascar, but since the goal is to get as many ipc as quickly as possible, Australias two ipc are tempting and once owned by Japan, very difficult for the allies to get back.  The transport can be used after Australia to take New Zealand, Hawaii, Madagascar, reinforce Africa, cannon fodder should the US get ambitious in the Pacific, or shuttle troops (from Pacific Islands?) to the mainland.

[Dirt Baller]

Germany holds all of Africa by turn 2?  Congrats!
If there is no money for Japan in Africa, then I think the best course of action is then to use the Indian Trn to bring the East Indies Inf to FIC.  Then it can move back to Japan Sea to help transport troops next turn.  The Pearl navy should go after the remaining US fleet or move back to Japan Sea if US decides to build a Pacific fleet.
The 2 Infs in Australia can be tough to beat.  You'll need to send a large part of your Pearl navy to help out.  Even then they can easily score two hits and make you regret while the US fleet slip into the Alantic.  In other words, fighting 2 Infs with 2 Infs plus whatever is inadequate and risky.

[Xi]

Concentrate on Asia to KILL USSR. 2 extra INF in Asia can make a difference v USSR. Or Africa if you choose to help take/hold it. Dashing to lose them in Australia is waste.

[Dirt Baller]

I can't resist asking why that darn tranny in the Indian Ocean is even alive?  British bomber crews must have been impaired by bad weather...or perhaps they were caught on the ground in India on J1

I agree SUD, but not every UK player is as capable of using his/her bomber as you and me.
Anyway haven't I convince you not to do Australia right away?  Supporting Asia and cleaning up the US fleet is the priority.  Australia can wait.  After you've built an IC in Asia, you can then send TWO trns plus whatever to Australia.

[Xi]

Concentrate on Asia to KILL USSR.

Disagree with the Japanese IC plan. It shorts you 5 INF or 3 INF/1 ARM. It puts your IC in range of the UK BMR, possibly, making you spend another 8 IPCs for an AA unit(3 INF or 1 INF/1 ARM.)

Maybe, if Japan has a really great overall attack(after J4)!

[Ozone27]

SUD: what are you looking to trade early-mid game w/ Japan?

I took a major defeat my last game (an unusual 2-player one) by not hurting UK enough as Axis. I fully believe T2 as Japan Hawaiian Islands invasion force should take Australia before anything else. Had I done this (& taken the opportunity to take India T2) I would've casue mayjor payne. As it was I was bottled up.

Problem is, what if you lose an INF in the 2 INF, 1 FTR attack on Hawaii? Put only 1 guy vs Australia? Seems like an awful risk...

Ozone27

[BigBlocky]

I'm not at all a fan of having the ��� navy roving around the Pacific.  2 Priorities, IPCs and attrition against russia.  When you exchange territories with russia you have the advantage of 6 air versus 2.   You can exchange back and forth to the ��� advantage vis-a-vis IPC values of units ultimately lost.  To do this you need fodder.  The ��� transports must stay close to home and get 2/round onto the continent.  A long voyage might move 2 infantry into 'attack postion' over 3 rounds.  Staying between Burma and Japan brings 6 over 3 rounds.  Of course if you have extra transports for some reason ( fill in the blank ) then by all means

BB

[Xi]

So each of you leaves the US BB and TRN in W US sz to build a fleet (oh, happy day) or sail to UK sz and be in a W EUR invasion by US3?
Just axin'!

S_U_D, is there an old game(u as Japan) posted here?
I can see the need for 2 hit BB.

[BigBlocky]

Xi, let me get this straight.  You build xports and not factories right, I do the same.  Yet now you say if you don't use your ��� capital ships to chase down the US Fleet of W. USA it's a mistake?  You can't have your cake and eat it too.....  In my world the allies move SO FAST against Germany that the BB is not needed by the time it can get there.  Besides, if the US fleet doesn't want to engage your ��� fleet it won't.....  In that case your 80 IPC fleet is out of the action for 3 turns...  Can't wait to play you.....

I try to optimise my equipment usage.  Have 80 IPC of equipment chasing 32IPC for 3 rounds doesn't make sense especially in light of the fact the allies don't even need that equipment.  Again, every move is a trade off.  Man, I'm gonna by the Cd tommorow and give you the chance to shut me down soon, or realize I might just know a thing or two...

BB

[Xi]

You read me wrong ...just axin'.

[Anonymous]

I was the guest who orignally posted this topic.

Dirtballer, you stated the following:

Supporting Asia and cleaning up the US fleet is the priority. Australia can wait. After you've built an IC in Asia, you can then send TWO trns plus whatever to Australia.

No disrespect, but having taken India with the British built factory, I now have an IC in Asia.  Also my opponents were not great players  (nor do I pretend to be a top player either   ) so they were not defending well in Asia, never posed a serious threat to retake India, and seemed to be concentrating mainly on the German-Russian front and later (maybe this was their big mistake) on Africa, taken and held for most of the game by Germany.

So I chose to expand into Australia to pick up IPCs quickly.  With two inf plus two fighters from the AC,  my odds calculator says I should win about 98% of the time (which I did win).  And even if I do not, there are plenty of inf on the surrounding islands to try again next turn (one inf plus two fighters from AC and hopefully at least one of the defending inf died in the first attack).  

Of course I did continue to push in Asia as well, but knowing how the game usually goes for the Axis, I was trying to build a large economy ASAP and Australia is a very tempting 2 ipc per turn that the Allies cannot take back (and doesn't even need to be defended) unless they have basically already won the game.  From there I went to NZ and then Hawaii with my transport and AC (two more IPCs per turn), while pushing hard into Russia.

B.T.W. We did win as the Axis, as I (Japan) was able to take Moscow before the allies could take Berlin.