A friend of mine and myself have been putting this new game through its paces ever since it came out, we’ve played just under 100 hours now, and here’s our latest thoughts on how the Allies should go.
I don’t know if maybe we’re slow learners, and everyone else has already gotten on to this, but in our last game session, we discovered Guam as the key to the Allies, along with a naval base on Wake Island (US 1).
We’ve played through zillions of the J2 & J3 opening attacks, but I will say this up front, that we haven’t yet tried any of the J1 attacks. So maybe this isn’t a good counter to a J1 attack?
First off, we started many games with the Japanese buying 3 transports J1, then we moved to the Japanese buying 2 transports and a minor IC on J1. We found ways for the Allies to block Japanese transports in SZ6 on J2 to some extent by moving the British BB up to Guam and the American DD from the PI up to, I think it’s SZ19, to screen off the PI from transports originating in Japan.
Then we got on to Japanese putting the minor complex down on J1, and the Allies just couldn’t afford to lose the ships early on like that in blocking moves. The Japanese could always opt to go for a J3 attack and sail through the blocks on J2 anyways, leaving those units sitting in the breeze on J3.
Last game session, we tried something I haven’t read yet on any of the forums, although I haven’t really been going through them in the first place. So like I said earlier, it may be what I’m posting here is already widely known by all.
But last game session, we started out with an American naval base going into Wake Island on US1, along with both the US infantry units and the fighter going from the PI to Guam on US1. The entire US fleet, and all of its at start air units go to Wake Island.
The idea is kinda to make Guam like the Japanese use Truk. You get lots of air units on an island with an airbase and it’s pretty tough to root them out. The airbase acts like a force multiplier, so an attacker may have to commit twice the forces to root out a base like that.
Anyway, the whole goal is for the US to get, or to be going after Guam. If they can do that, then they threaten not only Japan, but the whole Asian coastline from Korea all the way down to Vietnam.
If on US1, they have their at start fleet at Wake, a naval base, and the 2 fighters and two dive bombers on Wake plus the 3 bombers, then they have the most options as to what to do on US2. They are in position to possibly counter attack Guam if the Japanese took it (two transports with three infantry and one armor: 1CV w/ 1ftr & 1Tac, 1BB, 1CA, 1SS along with 3 bombers if you want to risk a landing on New Guinea available to clear the SZ), they can move to Australia and SZ54, and they have two routes to attack Japan if there is an opening there. The fighters from Wake can reach Guam if still held by the US on US2, and the ANZAC fighters can fly up from Queensland on ANZAC 2 as well. This is especially important if the US had to counter attack Guam and were able to retake it on US2. The 4 ANZAC ftrs can fly up from Queensland to bolster the defence after the assault.
The prospect of having a large force of Allied fighters and dive bombers on Guam by turn two is enough to make Japan react to it, one way or the other.
I don’t know if taking Guam on J1 is part of the whole J1 attack thing or not, but if Japan leaves Guam in US hands by the start of US 2, then they are in serious trouble. In that case, if the US can send in the two transports to Guam from Wake on their own, they do, along with every air unit they have, even carrier air. Like I said, the 4 ANZAC ftrs come up too at the end of the Allied turn, and now Japan is looking at Guam with at least 4 land units, 3 US ftrs & 3 tac air, along with 4 ANZAC ftrs. If the US fleet moves to Guam as well, then the Japanese are going to have to mount one super serious naval effort to get at Guam.
From Wake, the US can keep putting in more air to Guam, and ships can reach Guam as well with the naval base being on Wake.
Is taking Wake part of the J1 attack deal?
It’s my opinion, and i think most peoples (although many differ b/c of the many options of the game) that a J1 attack is the best. I don’t know about that whole Guam thing. I’ll look into it, but I usually don’t build air or naval bases, and just use existing ones, which makes the Phillipines and caroline islands very important as the U.S. player. Also, for threatening the mainland, I usually just mass at Hawaii, which can threaten Korea (which Japan should never loose or they are screwed) and the Caroline. If you move to the Caroline from there, then you threaten Korea and Japan again, the Philippines, the mainland and you’ve got a ton of options w/o having to waste ipcs on bases. Japan usually can’t defend home sea zone and the caroline, so it serves the same purpose as Guam with the added bonus of an anti-aircraft gun and not having to spend anything.