Taking on Russia

Have Japan do it :wink:

Seriously, killing Russia isn’t Germany’s job. The trick for germany is to hold out against the allies, while forcing the Russians to put infantry into Karelia and not tanks.

I agree.
Just keeping Ukraine is no small victory for Germany.

Japan needs to apply pressure quick, up and through the fall of Russia. Russia must be taken AND held before any significant US build up is achieved or the Axis cause is bleak…

That is why the US, and/or the UK need to turn up the heat in SE Asia in order to stop/stall Japan.

I think what the Field Marshal is saying about an Allied buildup in Europe will spell doom for the Axis. With SE Asia, a smart player will ignore you as it’ll take some time before Allied ships can really disrupt Japan’s transport convoys. Instead of transports he can switch to IC’s for production.

There are 2 basic strategies to winning the game as Germany by killing USSR. The 1st is a rapid, desperate, all-out strike designed to destroy USSR in a matter of a few turns. In this strategy, you buy mainly Armor (ARM) units, with some Infantry (INF) and launch wave after wave of assaults on Karelia/Caucases, regardless of losses in an attempt to wreck USSR before the Western Allies can build up an invasion force against you. An important part of this strategy is for Japan to frighten USA enough that USA builds most of her forces in the Pacific. After initial strikes against the UK fleet and in Africa, these become only secondary targets thereafter.

However, this strategy is very much a gamble in which you are betting you will receive vastly better results on dice rolls than USSR. Worse, it leaves Germany with no backup and no fallback in case it doesn’t work in the 1ST 3 OR 4 TURNS!!! After that you will have virtually no FTRs, no INF left in Europe, and the Allies will begin invading you–whereupon you will lose. So much for the “quick” approach…

Consider, though, for a moment the economic situation. As Germany (income 32 IPCs) you could just steamroller USSR (income 24) in a few turns if it weren’t for those pesky Western Allies. So the key to the economic game is to increase Germany’s income, and hold off the Western Allies WITH AS LITTLE MONEY AS POSSIBLE so you can crush USSR with the rest.

In this scenario, therefore, you commit a little more heavily in Africa to gain an increased income, and fight to keep it when the Allies come a-knocking. With the increased funds, you try to maintain an air force (and if possible, a sub force) while spending the majority of your income on INF with some ARM. The key is to watch what USSR buys and just buy MORE of it. Try Strategic Bombing USSR, especially with Japanese help, to further weaken the giant. Use your Air units (and/or SUBS) to prevent a strong Allied fleet from building up in the Atlantic. Don’t forget about the retreat option: if you are putting enough pressure on USSR, and have vastly more ARM, try “raid-style” attacks on Karelia (where USSR usually puts a LARGE amount on INF) and retreat when all your INF are gone–that way you can often use the ARMs superior attack capabilities without placing them in a situation where they can be counterrattacked. When the moment is right, steamroller the weakened USSR with a massive force.

And remember, you cannot win without the aid of your sole ally, Japan. Get Japan to launch attacks on the Soviet Union in the far east and start gobbling up territory. The USSR will be forced to divide their dwindling forces against the threat and will be more easily destroyed. That Japanese BMR doesn’t hurt either–well, it doesn’t hurt YOU anyways…

Hope these ideas help…

Ozone27

Very well written. When I first started playing A&A, I always thought Kerilia had to be conquered within the first three turns. Now as I play more I’m beginning to see that the offensive-defensive stance for Geramny is the best way to go.

I should add: the purpose of maintaining a fighter force in Europe (mainly in Western Europe) is to sink Western Allied (USA, UK) transports in the Atlantic. This is the most efficient way to prevent an Allied invasion. If you don’t, you are forced to adopt the much less efficient tactic of loading Western Europe with INF every turn: this tactic is generally a loser because in a relatively short time the Allies will outproduce you and kill all the INF. Plus fewer TR in the water means fewer invasion options for the Allies–fewer places to attack. By maintaining your planes in Western Europe, you maximize their usefulness. In Western Europe you can reach just about any place you’d usually want to (including Karelia–a lot of beginners don’t notice that) and when they fly back, they help in the defense of Western Europe. Just keep in mind to not build too many–save the planes you have because you’ll need most of your money to defeat USSR.

Ozone27

Another post I agree with. By maintaining a strong ftr. force you can significantly delay a landing made by Allied Forces at both N. Africa or WE.

1. This forces UK and USA to work together as Allied transports can no longer move unprotected. Forcing money on building a Navy draws away IPCs much needed fronts and slows any build-up.

2. Ftrs. prove the perfect defense. If you’re defending with 6 inf. and 4 ftrs., the Allies are once again forced to build is higher numbers in order to overrun these defenses.

In all, ftrs. are the best way to slow down any sort of invasion.