@JimmyHat:
From reading your summary I have a few observations. Most likely they will be wrong due to the fact I was not present throughout the game.
The UK player really put the allies in the Lurch with a badly executed UK1. 1 ftr vs dd trn? There is way to much advantage to the allies and disadvantage to Italy in that battle to only send 1 unit. Think of these 2 ships as the sweetest……item or person you know. Do not let them survive, send 2 units.
He also made a very bad purchase in Saf. I have seen 2 mechs bought before in Saf, but I wonder why? UK has enough units at the front to withdraw slowly from Egypt, and had he spent those 8ipcs on a trn he would have been shipping cheaper units in at the same speed. 2 arty would have also been a good purchase. Sure its going to take a while for them to reach the front but when they do they’re going to add some punch. 2 mechs is nigh worthless for UK1.
This debacle forced US to spend more in the Atlantic and let Italy become powerful, be glad he wasn’t on your side. As for Russia, why did he leave those aa guns in Novgorod? Perhaps those are German and my eyes are bad. Sure am glad in my home game we switched the Italian and French units. It is so much easier to see the Italians in Russia when they are blue and not dark brown…like the Russians.
I agree with you. I think that the Alpha 3 rules certainly put Italy in a better position in the Med; however, the UK’s decision to go “all in” attacking Sea Zone 99, and only using the fighter on Malta to attack the transport and destroyer in 96, REALLY allowed Italy to get a foothold in our game.
In retrospect, I think that the UK player would have done better to have moved the entire British fleet into SZ 99, and made sure that the Italian Transport and Destroyer where taken care of. At that stage of the game, the Fighter in Normandy had not been destroyed… I would have had the fighter land on the carrier in 99, and use the other fighter to scramble from Malta if the Italians attacked. In addition the UK cruiser in SZ 91 (if it is still alive) can also reach SZ 99 and help secure the fleet in the Med.
As for the AA guns in Novgorod, I am not sure why those where not drawn back.