I can’t compete! My first game is this weekend… so far I’ve played myself three times… life in rural America. I can only dream of 70 games…
However, I now vote for 7inf/2arm as a nice conservative start, but the addition of the 2 armor provides some relief to the front. I’m a big believer that it’s ok to spend armor on the front in some amount to meet your objectives. As always, with a KGF against you, Germany needs to clean out as many Russians as humanly possible to weaken them for Japan.
The 9 inf/art purchase I agree with, Darth. It sets up a good position to both defend France and start a consistent push. Armor behind it on turn two is your friend.
Cmdr, definitely worth playtesting. I hadn’t thought of it… I think a good use of armor, and brutal for Russia to lose it for two rounds. If you end up with only 1 inf, you just leave the tanks at home.
7 inf/art/arm is nice. In the 41 version Russia can get pretty burly pretty early, and Germany seems a little slower to the front with infantry. The round to throw down the armor with Russia is 2.
Germany’s role in a KGF is to engage and destroy as many Russians as possible before major Allied forces show up in Norway/ France/ Italy. Then you kill as many of the interlopers as possible to keep the US and Britain from strengthening the center of the game board and easing Russia’s burden.
Because of this, I would never leave a territory vacant on the front with Russia. Germany should as a general rule be uber-aggressive. You cannot allow the Allies (especially Russia) to stack. A stacking war favors the Allies, with the rare exception of economic supremacy for the Axis. You must thin the Russian forces. Pulling back and playing defensively (as a philosophy) leads to a slow German death.
This was probably covered 619 posts ago, but just weighing in after a long absence.
Japan in a KGF situation can become nearly unstoppable if it is run with precision.
The goal is to go through Persia, as it is the key to unlocking Russia, it dominates the coast of Africa, and it stops any allied reinforcements from coming through the Middle East to Russia’s relief.
3 transports J1, IC in F Indo on J2, and an IC in India as soon as a sustainable 42 is reached. Sprinkle in 1-2 more transports, and somewhere between turn 5 and 7 (based on allies’ opening moves to slow Japan) the following Yellow Machine should be unveiled:
One transport in SZ60.
One transport in SZ61.
Two transports in SZ36.
One to two transports in SZ 34, along with the rest of the Japanese navy and between 2 and 4 fighters parked on carriers.
Each round 8 infantry are placed on Japan. Armor is placed in French Indo, the rest in India (as a general rule of thumb), as both builds will then be able to reach Persia on the following round.
The Japanese Machine operates like this:
Each round the single transports in SZ60 and SZ61 pick up 2 infantry each and drop them in F Indo. The two transports in F Indo split and go to SZ60 and SZ61, each picking up 2 infantry and dropping them in Buryatia and Manchuria, respectively. 3 units are built in F Indo, and 3 units are built in India. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.
The reasoning is as follows- the northern backdoor of Russia is necessary to take for economic reasons, and to keep Russia from feeling comfortable. This can be accomplished with 2 infantry in an unending flow, supported by aircraft as necessary. If Russia/ allies make a push back at Japan in the north, no big deal- IPC values are low, and you just keep falling back toward your wheelhouse.
The central path through China is necessary to take for economic/ pressure producing reasons as well, but it is American economy, and if Russian troops are used to continually push in that direction, it is of little direct boon to Russia. The key again is a steady flow of infantry, 2-3 at a time from Manchuria and F Indo. Again, air power is used to continue to make small scale attacks in Evenki, Novo, and Kazahk.
The southern route is where the heavy lifting occurs. We all know how uncomfortable things become for Russia when Japan is rooted in Persia. It should be the single- minded goal, and should be there for the taking considering the air power and double Battleship bombardment capacity that Japan has at its disposal. Infantry/ artillery placed in India are backed up by armor placed in F Indo, with the whole structure underpinned by a steady, consistent flow of infantry over the top, through the middle, and more heavily through the southern path, all simultaneously. Russia will have its hands full.
Once Persia is taken and held, Japanese naval power can raid the coast of Africa, but it must be done with minimal troops, as the goal is Russia. Do not allow any allied reinforcements in that theater to distract you from the main goal, as Africa is a sideshow.
Eventually being rooted in Persia becomes an opportunity to become rooted in Kazahk, which means the Caucasus can be yours.
A quick review… 2 infantry per round over the north through Buryatia, 2-3 infantry per round up the gut via Manchuria/ F Indo, and 9-10 mixed units per round along the southern route through F Indo/ India and on into Persia. From there let your imagination do the rest.
The key to this strategy is Germany. If Germany plays it safe this will not work, as allied reinforcements will flow through Norway/ Karelia/ Archangel into Russia and do the bloody work in Russia’s place. Russia must be isolated, which means that Germany has to be super-aggressive in the following order- kill everything colored brown until allied landings force you to attack tan and green, and then kill as many forces as they hit the beaches as possible, so they never show up in Russia to help out against Japan. Leave France lightly defended, and invite Britain to engage in a trading war in France. The more allied units that die this way the better. If allied armies begin to stack, and pool, all bets are off.
It goes without saying that this is just a template and general strategy, and game realities can change things. But try it and see if you like it…
Well that stinks, JamesG just got converted… my only W Rus/ Ukraine ally!!!
Newpaintbrush, you’re persuasive.
Good analysis. It’s hard to shake my conviction, although I haven’t been disappointed when I’ve attacked W Russia/ Belo, I admit. It’s extremely solid. I think it’s probably the safest way to go and I understand why people do it.
But man, I love killing the German fighter…
I’m less concerned with tipping my hand than with limiting my enemy’s options, newpaintbrush. Killing the German fighter in the Ukraine has a ripple effect that spills over into multiple battes on G1. It also helps to minimize an aggressive German stacking of Karelia on G1, as some forces have to be dispatched to the Ukraine to deal with Ivan’s bold move. Nextly, a Luftwaffe of 6 fighters and a Bomber is pretty formidable, especially in a late game situation. Say it’s turn 14, how many ways have you found to use that fighter from the Ukraine? How about 14 times on offense and 14 times it’s been parked somewhere to provide extra defense. That’s a big deal to this monkey.
I do place my Russian builds as you said, 3 inf/ art in Caucasus, and 2 inf/ arm in Russia. The fighters typically return to the Caucasus region.
My standard UK1 purchase is 2 transports/ 3 inf/ arm to bring maximum pressure to a single theater on UK2. The Ukraine aggression along with a British enhanced capacity to put boots on the ground quickly = a sustainable Russia much of the time, IMO, discounting the fickleness of crazy bad luck.
As far as the 2 armor into the Ukraine goes, that’s a gambit for sure. I play by the odds only, for otherwise you might as well get out your pouch of chicken bones to portend the results. If I can’t depend on math, or live in fear of bad dice, what’s the point? And the odds of that battle yield a Russian victory with 1-2 armor left. Good enough for me. Discounting a German bid placement in the Ukraine of course. If I’m playing a particularly ferocious opponent, I do use 3 armor to make sure they have to dedicate 3-4 infantry to retake the Ukraine.
My final litmus test is my own reaction as Germany to a Russian player’s opening move. Here are my two reactions:
“Crap, the Ukraine is dead…”
“Sweet, I’ve still got my fighter!”
When all else fails, that alone tells me what I need to know.
JamesG- I love the 3 inf/ 3arm combo, but I’ve slowly moved away from it toward inf/ art on an approximate 5-1 basis, and here’s why. I hate leaving Russian armor on the front to die (but I do enjoy it as Germany…), therefore I always find myself hoarding armor when I play Russia. It’s a personal problem I have. For me Russian armor tends to stack as mobile defense or be used in a single decisive battle- not bad ideas in and of themselves but counter to my need for continuous Russian aggression vs. Germany. Russian artillery, on the other hand, I have no problem leaving to die. Cheap offense to complement the small Russian air force, and expendable.
Hmmm…. covering old ground, here, but W Rus/ Ukraine does the trick for me. Do it with 2 armor in each. Kill the German fighter and suddenly some of Germany’s battles on G1 become more dicey- for example a sub and 3 fighters vs the Brit Battleship can mean a lost fighter for Germany, whereas the sub and 4 fighters is a bit more comforting. That’s just one example. It also helps the Allied fleets to move around more comfortably in the Atlantic with a smaller Luftwaffe, which means (potentially) more immediate help for Russia in exchange for their R1 expenditure of armor in the Ukraine. 5 German fighters and a Bomber allows an 8+ unit Allied landing in Algeria without much fear on Turn 1 (assuming a standard G1 attack on Egypt using Med fleet).
Purchase 5/1/1, for maximum versatility.
6 Inf to Buryatia, 2 go to Russia, 2 go to Caucasus, 2 go to Sinkiang in case Japan has J1 misfortune in China.
For me this purchase + combat/ noncombat combo gives the best versatility to respond to any axis strategy, while inflicting a serious opening wound on Germany, and still maintaining some offensive punch for Germany’s counter.
Off topic- IMO it’s a holistic approach as Newpaintbrush said. Germany and Japan have to work in concert, and there is an ebb and flow. What I’ve found is that if I don’t kill every possible unit in front of me as Germany, those forces pool and the game becomes a stacking match, which generally favors the Allies. In my old age I’ve become (seemingly) absurdly aggressive with Germany, with the object to filet the Russians first, followed by as many British and US forces as possible (with Russian units still a #1 priority). While Germany shrinks the Allies get burned up as they land – Japan grows – and finds in front of it tasty Russian units rather than Allied reinforcements. Japan vs. Russia alone = most likely a scrambling Allied player.
So trading units on the Russian front/ in Norway/ in France may seem like Germany is heading down the tubes, but with solid Japanese play it’s actually serving a purpose. In short, as Germany I never let an Allied unit pass through my wheelhouse unscathed unless it’s strategically necessary to leave it alone (a rare necessity).
On topic- It’s already been answered, but the 2 Inf/ Art/Arm/Ftr/Bmr approach to Egypt is pretty necessary w/o a bid. A solid British player will take back Egypt and land in Algeria on UK1, followed up by US muscle (again, assuming a non-bid situation, or a bid placed in Europe). You can win without much economy in Africa for Germany, but for an even shot at the game you really need to make the Allies play around in Africa for a few turns, with Germany devoting minimal forces to the theater. I often pick up units from Africa G2 and head for the Ukraine to muscle up vs. the Russkies anyhow, even if my G1 Egypt attack went splendidly. Unless faced with an Allied player who makes no effort to retake Africa, cut your losses quickly and hammer on Russia to take the Allied player out of their comfort zone.