UK

@argothair yes that indeed is an issue. That is why i stop doing taranto but this form of Gibastion. This way i save the fleet and carrier. So UK 2 i move them (UK fighters from the Med and London who are now in algeria) to Egypte and there on to Moscow. Togethee with the Anzac fighters this gives Russia a bit of breathing space.
The factory in Egypte buys subs and a fighter turn two and from turn 3 on fighters abd Land units .
It is not the perfect plan but wirh a US going 75% KJF you can’t invade Europe direct.

I argued should I for Scotland too which I said no as you have to worry about that being Sea Lion invasion and you can just beat it up from London.

If the Germans have a fleet, they can attack up north from SZ 112 (threatening Karelia, Novo, Arch, Nemestia), there has to be a specific LZ for the fighters to cross which you can threaten or deny as long as you have attacked them on G2 or G1.    Fighters crossing the med have a slow time of it.    Maybe some help can come in the form of making it more inconvenient for the UK fighters to get into Russia in the first place?

I also dislike blowing the Russian NO by having allies hanging out in Russia before its abs necessary, but that could be pretty early in the game.

“Sea Lion”  if the USSR has a fleet and Novogrod, they can keep this threat alive for a long time.  No matter what I want to do with UK, I usually end up buying 6+1 and bringing as many Canadians across as I can.  If I lose any significant ## of fighters, UK has to continue to worry that Germany can bring wave after wave of attackers, which keeps me conservative.  This is why the Gibraltar air base or crossing to Russia early would be difficult;  I don’t have enough fighters to protect UK and project threat.  Once they cross to Russia, they cant cross back…

“Get Cairo”  That sounds awesome but with a UK bid of 10, its not going to happen.  If Germany and Italy build/rebuild navy and try to control the Med, that’s a subtle win for the Allies.  Navy is resource intensive and takes away the armor punch described by the other posters.  Without an added commit, I just don’t see how the Axis can take Egypt at all, there are just too many UK pieces around there.  Germany can fly or bring ships down there but its a 1 way trip, into a dead end trap, and its away from the critical path (Russia)

“Tan Skies”  you are on the right track;  if UK has 6+ fighters it is kicking butt, if not, it feels cornered and powerless.  The key for the axis is to do the strongest opener that doesn’t invite any scrambles, then the UK navy is dead and Germany has most of its air left.  The UK also doesn’t need to lose any (many) fighters during its opener, other stuff can take the casualties.  Its especially good if the airforce from Taranto lives to fight another day (by avoiding the Italian counterstrike, we hope 1 sb 1 French inf 1 tac 1 fighter on Syria?)

The transport shuck is good for flexibility, by like was said earlier, it has risk with air attacks.  If I was investing a lot into the med, I would have an airbase in egypt with planes to help protect.  Maybe a destroyer in the Red Sea to assist as well.  Mechs and Tanks tend to be less costly to set up and will be very useful, especially if you are building constantly out of SA.

@Admiral:

@Rhey:

I always attack Japan in China on UK Pac 2. This reopens the burma route (as the Japanese have way too limited ground forces) and keeps china in play. China is really more important then most of the players think. I find them very strong, especially against those scattered Japanese forces. The only problem is their airforce but every japanese unit you can take out on the mainland, is a huge win.

Crazy thing about the Japanese air force and Chinese units is this, the latter just needs to keep those precious stacks out of their range. Pull back, retreat. Advance when the time is right. A smart Chinese players does this, and makes the Japanese player really invest their time in the Chinese hinterland, splitting their options.

Best strategy for the Chinese is to play exactly like the Russians:  Turtle up and keep one step away from the units trying to take them out.  Each round you’ll be able to add 2-3 Inf to your big starting stack.  Once Japan attacks the UK or Anzac, you’re free to start marching towards either A:  Burma Road to reclaim it or B: The valuable territories the Japanese start with in the north.

Both cases make Japan invest more deeply into taking China than it wants to, while buying time until India can help you retake the Burma Road.  Don’t play foolish with your big starting stack, protect it until the Japanese are too thin or they’ve invested too much in China (which is an IPC sink if Japan doesn’t get it early).

@Gargantua:

My heart always feels like it Jen.

As Japan I like it when Russia invades.  I strip Manchuria/Korea because if they invade I get extra money and if they dont invade I dont have to go back.  The downside is, I eventually have to invade Russia.

I would much rather crush India like an over-ripe grape early in the game, knock out the Australians and worry about fleet for a few rounds, once I feel secure against America (assuming they sent anything towards Europe so I have a chance to feel secure - in alpha 2 -) then I can dump 50 IPC a round into China/Russia.

So far, in Alpha 3, it seems I don’t have to worry too much about America, they are hobbled pretty well with the loss of an NO in the Pacific.  Could be better, but at least now my opponents are investing in the Atlantic, at least a little.

@calvinhobbesliker:

Not too weak. OOB, they’re too strong with 28 planes and 3 transports. Both sides lost the same number of planes and transports, and Japan got 3 extra inf, while India got 2.

you find the Axis too strong in Global?  I like to reserve judgment this early on, but so far I’m finding the Axis quite challenging.

On topic, this strategy would leave Italy unmolested and invite a heavy India crush -  filling the coffers with a big bounty for Japan.  I’d be disinclined myself, but do let us know how it goes.

thanks for the responses.  I really appreciate it!