• '18 '17 '16 '11 Moderator

    The nice thing about Borneo/East Indies or even Philippine Island ICs is that it’s exponentially harder to take them.  You can’t just mass 40 tanks and 80 infantry, you have to actually sink the fleet defending the island, build a fleet and invade the island.


  • O rjust isloate them and wait for Germany to take Moscow and London :-D


  • Yes, and if Japan takes them back, it doesnt really help them out as much as an Allies Asain mainland IC would do under Japanese capture.

  • 2007 AAR League

    If you manage to surround the island with the IC with a sizable fleet it will be almost useless since you can only build 3 or 4 units per turn meaning it would take u a while to even put it to use


  • @ajgundam5:

    If you manage to surround the island with the IC with a sizable fleet it will be almost useless since you can only build 3 or 4 units per turn meaning it would take u a while to even put it to use

    I don’t get what you’re talking about.

    If the US built an IC on an island that it couldn’t hold, and Japan surrounded that IC with a fleet, the US was dumb for putting that IC there in the first place.  So it shouldn’t happen.

    If the US built an IC on an island and put a US fleet there, that 3-4 IPC factory is very useful, because you can produce 3-4 (usually 4) units there every turn.  Initially, you can produce fighters to help in the early naval domination, then you can switch to infantry and tank production to help US transports take over India.  It is FAR cheaper to build an industrial complex that produces 4 units a turn than it is to build four transports (2 transports to move units from W. US to Solomon, 2 transports to move units from Solomon to E. Indies).


  • The problem with the economic analysis above is that it ignores the cost required to obtain one of those properties to build on in the first place.

    For the US to take Borneo or East Indies (the only 2 islands with 4 IPC values) requires a significant advance investment by the United States JUST to get there.

    The FASTEST the US can get to Borneo or EI is US3.  And that would only be possible with the initial BB/TRN off Western (assuming Pearl occured).  It also assumes that the US did not have to do a Pearl Counter, and that at no time in J2 or J3 did Japan engage the lone BB and TRN sailing from Los Angeles.

    More likely would be a Turn 4 or Turn 5 US landing on Borneo or EI, allowing at least 1 round to build up some fleet for the journey, and a round to do the Pearl Counter.

    So in USA4, the US lands in Borneo or East Indies, after spending at least their US1 build on fleet to get there. 
    On USA5, you can finally BUILD that IC.
    On USA6, you can produce your first units there.

    SIX TURNS (MINIMUM) to get that IC established and operational.

    Now what pray tell has Japan been doing for those 6 turns that they allowed a small US fleet to move 3 turns across the Pacific, take a major island, build a factory, and strart producing there?  Didn;t they bother grouping their 2 BB’s, 1-2 AC’s and some FIG’s to be able to strike that fleet somewhere along the way… oh say off Solomons?  Or killing the US fleet once it arrives in SZ48 which is within range of land based FIGs and the BOM?

    And then there is the issue that, about the time the US is trying to slip into Borneo or East Indies, Japan was probably already gearig up for their Australia/New Zeland operations, meaning that at least a portion of Japan’s fleet, as well as invasion forces, are already in the area to either block the US invasions, or to just re-take either of them if the US were to gain them.

    The Birts can pull off an early seizure of one of thsoe Islands if everything goes right in UK1 & 2, but they don’t have the income to maintain their German offensive AND build fleet and air in the Pacific.  The US has the money to build there, but takes too long to arrive.

    You might as well also write about the Russian’s building an IC in Manchuria on R3…  :mrgreen:

  • 2007 AAR League

    In my game against Frimmel & Jennifer I tried a new strategy I like to call AJF (Annoy Japan First).  For the 1st 6 rounds the US spent half their income building a Pacific Fleet and the other half setting up a transport train from E. Canada>Norway.  On US9 the pacific fleet captured E. Indies and built an IC on US10 protected by UK/US ground forces (4tnk, 6inf, bmb) and a combined US/UK fleet of 5fgt, 3CV, 3BB, 4DD, 7SS, 5TP vs. Japans fleet of 6fgt, 3CV, 3BB, 3DD, 7SS, 3TP (plus 3fgt in FIC).  Japan attacked the combined fleet on J11 destroying the fleet with 4fgt, 2CV, 3BB, 1DD remaining.  Even though Japan got great dice (17hits in rd1 with 6/7 subs hitting) she still hasn’t retaken the Island.  We are on round 20 that’s 11 rounds the US has collected 4IPC & depriving Japan of that income.  The IC had an unexpected bonus, Japan has to keep her fleet close by because of the possibility that the US might drop 4 ships into that seazone at any time.

  • '18 '17 '16 '11 Moderator

    On the flip side, JSP, that IC is ostraiced from the world.  So the arguement against does have some merit.

    Not that it really matters.  America’s been pretty worthless in our game ever since you got destroyed in SZ 37.  England’s been dang powerful though.

  • 2007 AAR League

    @Jennifer:

    On the flip side, JSP, that IC is ostraiced from the world.  So the arguement against does have some merit.

    Not that it really matters.  America’s been pretty worthless in our game ever since you got destroyed in SZ 37.  England’s been dang powerful though.Â

    Oh contraire mon fraire (ooops…that’s french, I will have to punish myself  :-P )…it was the US that kicked Germany out of the Caucasus, it was the US that destroyed the German stack in Eastern, and it is the US that has 24tnks plus supporting infantry sitting on Germany’s border in Eastern.

  • '18 '17 '16 '11 Moderator

    Let me rephrase.  When it comes to MY sphere of influence, the Americans have been a paper tiger.


  • Well Jen all that time fiddling with the Navy did leave you no where near Moscow when I destroyed most of the Russian Army or when I took the CAU. JSP’s IC in East Indies has more or less locked your fleet down in blockade duty.  :|

    Not that all of my decisions where up there at genius level.  :|

  • '18 '17 '16 '11 Moderator

    On the plus side, dear, I did take Moscow on the turn I said I would. :)  I know it’s too late for Berlin, but that’s your fault for hiring Hitler to run your country, not Rommel or Gerbeort Heoring.

    Seriously, I just wish you had done better against the Brits.  They’re kicking both of our butts.  At least Russia is no more!


  • I checked in here first tonight. Terrific on Moscow Sweetie. I should have ababdoned EE but them’s the breaks. I also shouldn’t have blitzed WEU and UKR to give the US some extra loot. I see battleships in the future of the East Indies complex I’m afraid.

    But as to the Brits I think that IC has kept you from launching any kind of assault on EGY.

  • '18 '17 '16 '11 Moderator

    Yea, for a 2 IPC IC that’s an annoying one.

    Battleships are expensive.  If he wants to throw them away, I have no problem with that. :)

  • 2007 AAR League

    @Jennifer:

    Yea, for a 2 IPC IC that’s an annoying one.

    Battleships are expensive.  If he wants to throw them away, I have no problem with that. :)

    I’m very proud of my little egyptian IC, combined with the E. Indies IC they have been able to neutralize Jens Battleships and keep her out of Africa.

  • '18 '17 '16 '11 Moderator

    Yea, I’ve used an Egyptian one the same way once.  Though, what really kept me from an invasion wasn’t the IC or your silly Submarines, which did nothing but die.  It was lack of strength to follow up the invasion.

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