desert
Posts: 827
Joined: 9/14/2006
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Anyway, I'll be playing Elmer in this scenario.
Overview
quote:
Important Events
Research (allowing the player his choice of advanced weapons) ends turn 4.
The player receives a shock advantage from turn 2 through 10.
Loss of the "Napoleon VI" counter ends in automatic defeat.
Loss of Paris ends in automatic defeat.
Capture of key countries enables reinforcements and bonuses to supply.
Russia and Turkey declare war on France turn 116.
Supply points for the invasion of the United Kingdom are only enabled by the capture of Moscow.
The conquest of the United Kingdom ends the game in automatic Victory for the player.
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Research Islands
Research Islands is constructed to give the player an option on what "future" units he would like to see join his forces.
A research item is selected by placing the civilian "Researchers" counter on a ship and landing him on an island.
The only restraint the player has on choice is that he may only choose one item per horizontal line. Thus, for example, if the player wishes to begin research on "LR Bomber" he may do so on his first move. But will be blocked from researching "Missile" on his subsequent move.
All research will eventually result in additional forces with the exception of "Nucs" which is based on probability of discovery.
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Historical Overview
The Fourth Republic scenario is a hypothetical study in the operational art of war. The player is thrust into the position as Emperor of France during the late 1930's. Surrounded by fascist regimes, the player must unite Europe in a time when that continent, still reeling from the huge losses of World War I was unable to unite to face a common aggressor. As Napoleon VI, you must use this hesitancy to your advantage. Move aggressively to expand your empire as quickly as possible before the combined forces of Russia and Turkey declare war.
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Designer Notes
As a hypothetical study all Orders of Battle are merely representative and not historically based.
The intention of the game is to present the player with an overwhelming opponent.
The player must be able to attack, and yet at the same time defend, especially during the first 20 turns.
To guide the player, certain events are scheduled to provoke responses by the United Kingdom. Be wary of such events unless you can move boldly to contain British reinforcements.
VIVE L'EMPEROR!
GOOD LUCK and have FUN!
Strategy
There are six researchable technologies, but I may choose only three of them. The non-retarded choices would be Jet Fighters, Missile, and Heavy Armor (rejecting Navy, Long-Range Bomber, and Nukes). Before I can justify that, you need to understand the big picture.
I'm France, and I have to fight everyone. Like, straight-up every state in Europe plus Turkey, except of course for Switzerland. Finland is neither here nor there, but I get to control them because the Soviet Union attacks it eventually.
My immediate opponents are the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain, Italy, Germany, and Great Britain (their army in Egypt and the BEF). Denmark, Bulgaria, Romania, and Hungary are also active, but it will take some time for their forces to reach the front. Portugal, Greece, Sweden, and Norway activate later, in 1940. Poland, I don't know; probably if and when I conquer Germany. No idea about Yugoslavia. Soviet Union and Turkey are Turn 116, the beginning of '42. Turkey is a son-of-a-bitch, its army is bigger than Germany's. The other one doesn't bear mentioning.
Only considering the formations active on Turn 1, the Allies have 19 Armies, with ~125 non-HQ, non-garrison units (99 Inf, 16 Cav, 4 Amd, 3 Mot, 1 Mech). I have 10 Armies with ~43 non-HQ, non-garrison units (25 Inf, 7 Art, 4 Mot, 3 Cav, 2 Amd, 1 Mar, 1 RR).
Now for equipment. I'll let the screenshot speak for itself:
If you'll notice, I field 100 ships, 5000 planes, and 1500 tanks against the Turn 1 Allies' 790 ships, 8600 planes, and 970 tanks. So let's examine the research options...
Jet Fighters: Let's face it - the Allies have a vastly superior air force. My Bf-109s are good fighters, but there aren't enough to escort all the A-26s and Tu-2s and prevent them from being torn apart by the Airacobras and Whirlwinds. Eventually, the Allies will get La-7s, which are slightly more powerful than the Bf-109. However, having those jet fighters (MiG-17s) would give me a huge advantage and the air war would begin to tip into my favor. A bigger navy isn't a worthwhile investment: the Allied advantage is just so enormous that any new fleet would be sunk within a turn of its appearance.
Missiles: The Il-4's stats are nearly identical to those of the A-26; it just has greater range. Good for propagandized air raids on the enemy's bridges, not so much for achieving something tangible. With long-range missiles I can make stationing aircraft anywhere within a 750 kilometer radius of the front a suicidal prospect.
Heavy Armor: Seriously? This was the easiest choice to make. With Nuclear Research I'd get the ability to send B-29s on suicide missions to drop Fat Men that might kill a whopping 2% of the targeted enemy stack. Nukes are worthless in TOAW, is what I'm saying. Now, tanks: my French tanks have good armor and are superior to the German tanks, T-60s, and M5s (thought the British start with a pittance of Shermans). The Allies make up for this later on by spamming super tanks with massive armor and even more impressive AP values. IS-2s, SU-152s...I'm definitely getting those AMXs laters, and they're pretty good, but have worthless armor. So it seems like the "Heavy" Armor research pays off with...the Sturmgeschutz? Still so much better than nukes.
I've played this scenario against myself a few times. In the most recent bout, the French offensive into Germany and the Low Countries quickly stalled and I hunkered down for a while. The French navy had been effectively neutralized by Turn 2. Static defense didn't work out very well, and the Italians smashed their way through the French Alps while the Germans and Romanians saw limited success just north of the Swiss Alps. I'd managed to keep the Spanish bottled up behind the Pyrenees, but the Italian breakthrough forced the French to cede the whole South, and eventually they fell back along these lines. Even with fullstacks galore, the Allies could not penetrate anywhere. Meanwhile, Finland was invaded by the Soviets and I set up a last-ditch defense around Helsinki, only to get a surprise fullstack from mobilizations. One Soviet army is no match for one heavily entrenched Finnish army, and Corsica was also heavily defended, so I quit because of overwhelming stalemate. Oh yeah, and in North Africa the combined Italo-British armies easily outflanked my isolated garrisons. The only supply points are Casablanca and Beyrouth (in Syria), allowing the Allies to slowly but surely swallow up my African colonies. I never had enough forces to do more than bleed them white in Morocco.
So, my mistake as the French was focusing far too much on the center. I should have made an all-out push for Brussels (Belgian surrender) and rushed to contain the BEF in Amsterdam. The only way to succeed is to eliminate enemy corps piecemeal, because it is literally impossible to move a dense stack once it is in a defensive posture. So I should then push through northern Germany, take Hamburg and Hannover, and turn south at the Elbe and encircle the German positions opposite my border. In Southern France, my only option is to hold the mountain passes. A Marine Brigade is in Marseilles as a reserve. I might even consider using it in my colonies, but I will lose them unless the Allies' colonial armies stay put long enough for sufficient reinforcements to accumulate in Tunis and Algiers.
< Message edited by desert -- 7/26/2010 10:13:47 PM >
_____________________________
"I would rather he had given me one more division"
- Rommel, when Hitler made him a Field Marshall
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