Slitherine

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ORIGINAL: composer99

Before I forget, now that the US has the tension to pass War Appropriations, it should refrain from passing any new options, if at all possible, until then.

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ORIGINAL: Red Prince

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So if you have 6 sea lift units for the US, what 3 air and land units are you going to send to Europe and which 3 out into the Pacific? There will only be one trip for each TRS/AMPH per turn unless you dedicate an HQ to reorganize them during a turn. Even then you need to hope that the turn doesn't end before they can make the second round trip.

The other 6 sea lift units need to be built ASAP. You know, there might be losses when they start sailing around when the US is at war with all the Axis major powers. And if you expect to actually invade somewhere, the units doing the invading will not be bringing reinforcements across.

In both theaters of the war you will want to have strong land and air units: fighters and naval air for sea operations and fighters and bombers for land operations. The strategic bombers can rebase to the United Kingdom on their own, but all the other units will be looking for a boat to ride over on.

I'll try to answer your questions first, and that might create another "You did what!!!"

I already have 2 GARR in Dutch Harbor, a GARR and INF in Honolulu, with 2 NAV and the 2 wimpy FTRs I started with in the Pacific region. Using extended range, I managed to get a LND to Iceland by way of Greenland. At the moment, I have a some land units, mostly the starting ART divisions, but also 2 INF divisions and both starting HQ units on the East Coast, but can get any/all of them back to the West Coast before they are needed there. Eisenhower is in production, so I'll transfer one of those HQs back for certain. The MAR will almost certainly be a West Coast reinforcement.
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And now . . .

I don't mean to pick on you, Steve, but it's this kind of thinking that gets on my nerves a little. Only a year into the game the US may be in good position to prepare for war, but just because the USA can DOW earlier than usual does not mean that it has had the time to prepare for it, does it? The Gear Up didn't happen until M/A '40, so there were 3 turns at 11 BP, 1 turn at 21 BP, and 1 turn at 20 BP before now. That's only 74 BP for the first 5 turns.

I was told, quite clearly, that I needed to build a land unit or two per turn from the start -- even with the USA -- so there is a minimum of 3 BP dedicated to that. I was told that I needed to build out my USA CV fleet as soon as they become available, which means I also needed to build the CVP and Pilots that would go with them soon after that. Now I'm told that I should also have focused on building out my sealift. This begins the circle, though:

Without sealift, the land units can't go anywhere. Without land units, what good is the sealift?

Again, I'm willing to admit that I may be wrong about this, because the USA absolutely wants to have all of these units on the map when it goes to war . . . but that doesn't usually happen until late 1941, which gives the USA player 3-4 more turns (~120 more BP) to work with than I'm expecting to get (assuming an early to mid-1941 entry).

So, the real question might have to be: just because the USA can enter the war early, should it? or is the threat enough to strike fear into the heart of Japan?

Perhaps I'm not terrific at planning 3-4 turns ahead, but with a game that is advancing "faster than average", I feel that the expectations (and suggestions/demands) are being made based on the typical point in the game that these events occur, rather than when they are actually happening.
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I will pre-apologize for any hard feelings this post generates. Maybe it's just a newbie thing, but maybe I do have a point?

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ORIGINAL: Centuur

On the building strategy by the USA, I agree. However, a few INF or GAR should be build to defend Dutch Harbour, Pearl Harbour and of course Pago Pago (don't forget that place, it's important. I lost it once in a game in the Japanese surprise impulse and got in a lot of problems for it).

Somebody here suggests a surrender of China. I would at least suggest waiting until 1941. The chit value of 1941 is far better than the one for 1940. Winter is coming, and it just might be that the Chinese (with both Kunming and Sian still in Chinese hands) will survive until that time. And 3-4 entry chits (for a conquest of China) is really nice, if they are good ones. If they are lousy ones (and in 1940 that is a good possibility) it might not be enough to go to war in early 1941.
Also: the Chinese Communists are still good for a good fight around Sian. Imagine also a Chinese Communist reïnforcement appearing in Sining (is that a communist city?) and it than starts walking towards Lan Chow. If the Japanese don't have units capable of getting to Lan Chow before it arrives, the Communists are having a ball, recapturing the place and forcing another roll for US entry. Very, very nice indeed. I don't know if there is a real communist INF arriving, but if it is, put it there and go for it (if indeed the Japanese units are out of range). It's always nice to force the Japanese into all kind of things they don't want to do. If you put that INF around Sian, it probably won't do as much good as in Sining...

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1 x SUB . . . to join the 3 I have already in Iceland, to counter Germany and support the CW pipelines

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ORIGINAL: Orm

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1 x SUB . . . to join the 3 I have already in Iceland, to counter Germany and support the CW pipelines

I suggest you relocate the US submarine fleet to the pacific as soon as possible. They will be much more useful threatening the convoy lines there.

I am sure that the US can find enough old battleships and cruisers to help the CW against Germany. Edit: If you do not have enough surface fleet for this I strongly suggest you begin to build more ships.

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ORIGINAL: Orm

I also suggest that you do not surrender China. If China is left in control of Kunming they might be able to build some units with lend lease assistance. China alive might also force Japan to make a land move or two when Japan would rather make a naval impulse.

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ORIGINAL: Red Prince

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ORIGINAL: Orm

I also suggest that you do not surrender China. If China is left in control of Kunming they might be able to build some units with lend lease assistance. China alive might also force Japan to make a land move or two when Japan would rather make a naval impulse.

Japan diplomatically closed the Burma Road, and should soon be able to close it physically, too.

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ORIGINAL: Red Prince

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ORIGINAL: Orm

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1 x SUB . . . to join the 3 I have already in Iceland, to counter Germany and support the CW pipelines

I suggest you relocate the US submarine fleet to the pacific as soon as possible. They will be much more useful threatening the convoy lines there.

I am sure that the US can find enough old battleships and cruisers to help the CW against Germany. Edit: If you do not have enough surface fleet for this I strongly suggest you begin to build more ships.

Not including CVs, I think the USA has about 40-45 SCS on-map. Maybe 50.

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ORIGINAL: Orm

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ORIGINAL: Red Prince

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ORIGINAL: Orm

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1 x SUB . . . to join the 3 I have already in Iceland, to counter Germany and support the CW pipelines

I suggest you relocate the US submarine fleet to the pacific as soon as possible. They will be much more useful threatening the convoy lines there.

I am sure that the US can find enough old battleships and cruisers to help the CW against Germany. Edit: If you do not have enough surface fleet for this I strongly suggest you begin to build more ships.

Not including CVs, I think the USA has about 40-45 SCS on-map. Maybe 50.

So why do US need the submarines to guard convoy lines then?

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ORIGINAL: Centuur

USA Sub's should go to the Pacific. My favorite base for them is Pago Pago, since that port is (apart from Manilla, where I wouldn't put any ships or Sub's because of the Japanese Surprise impulse) close to the South China Sea where the Japanese convoys transporting the oil are going to be. I would also suggest you move all CW/French sub's towards this area too, now the Med is closed for them.
You're builds by the USA are reasonable, especially since it is only 1940. Now, I would suggest transporting at least one INF type corps into Pago Pago.
Also: don't expect the USA of getting a surprise impulse against the Japanese. The thing I would do with the Allies is to keep the Chinese in play, until the USA have passed the War Appropriations Bill. At that point I would surrender the Chinese, if Kunming is the only factory city still under Chinese control, and the Commies haven't got an army left. If these both things occurs in J/F 1941, the USA gets 3-4 chits at that point. Those chits will mean the USA is capable of DoW'ing Japan (with a -2 modifier for a conquered China in place: 70 - 80% succes rate...). So Japan will need to DoW the USA in the first impulse of M/A 1941 (ready or not), if they are moving first. This is a very powerful thing to take into account.
Axis play should also be aimed at getting the Initiative marker back into a better position. So in the coming turns, if the initiative goes to the Axis, let the Allies play first...

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ORIGINAL: Red Prince

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ORIGINAL: Centuur

USA Sub's should go to the Pacific. My favorite base for them is Pago Pago, since that port is (apart from Manilla, where I wouldn't put any ships or Sub's because of the Japanese Surprise impulse) close to the South China Sea where the Japanese convoys transporting the oil are going to be. I would also suggest you move all CW/French sub's towards this area too, now the Med is closed for them.
You're builds by the USA are reasonable, especially since it is only 1940. Now, I would suggest transporting at least one INF type corps into Pago Pago.
Also: don't expect the USA of getting a surprise impulse against the Japanese. The thing I would do with the Allies is to keep the Chinese in play, until the USA have passed the War Appropriations Bill. At that point I would surrender the Chinese, if Kunming is the only factory city still under Chinese control, and the Commies haven't got an army left. If these both things occurs in J/F 1941, the USA gets 3-4 chits at that point. Those chits will mean the USA is capable of DoW'ing Japan (with a -2 modifier for a conquered China in place: 70 - 80% succes rate...). So Japan will need to DoW the USA in the first impulse of M/A 1941 (ready or not), if they are moving first. This is a very powerful thing to take into account.
Axis play should also be aimed at getting the Initiative marker back into a better position. So in the coming turns, if the initiative goes to the Axis, let the Allies play first...

A few things about this:

Pago Pago cannot yet be reinforced. I can't remember which Option needs to be taken, but I haven't taken it yet, so no INF can go there.

Also, if China Surrenders, the USA doesn't get to draw 3-4 chits. That only happens if China is Conquered.

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ORIGINAL: Red Prince

Here are the builds for the 1st 5 Turns made by the USA:

S/O '39: USA (11): 1 x TERR, 1 x GARR, 1 x CV(1st), 2 x CVP-0, 1 x CVP-1, 1 x CV(Repair), 1 x Pilot
N/D '39: USA (11): 1 x INF Division, 1 x GARR, 1 x AMPH(1st), 2 x CVP-1, 1 x Pilot
J/F '40: USA (11): 1 x INF, 1 x GARR, 2 x CVP-1, 2 x Pilot
M/A '40: USA (21): 1 x MAR, 1 x HQ-A, 2 x CVP-1, 3 x Pilot
M/J '40: USA (20): 1 x MTN Division, 1 x MOT Division, 1 x AMPH(1st), 1 x FTR-2, 1 x CVP-1, 1 x NAV-3, 1 x SUB(2nd), 3 x Pilot

So, here's what we have:

1 x TERR . . . in Manila, so that I could evacuate the HQ there
3 x GARR . . . fortifying Honolulu and Dutch Harbor
1 x INF . . . fortifying Honolulu
10 x CVP . . . this may seem like a lot, but a few of my starting CVP dropped in Class when the year turned. I now have 6 CV Class-4 on-map, with 5 Class-4 CVP and 2 Class-2 CVP
10 x Pilot . . . this was for the CVP -- also, concerning the CVP and Pilots, there are more 2nd cycle CV still arriving on the (or about to arrive) on the spiral
2 x AMPH in their 1st cycle
1 x HQ-A (to arrive at the end of this year)
1 x INF Division . . . now available for SCS invasion on Surprise impulse
1 x MTN Division . . . soon to be available for SCS invasion on Surprise impulse
1 x MAR . . . about to be available for TRS invasion on Surprise impulse
1 x MOT Division . . . think it was the only available division that fit my price, and can be used with an INF Division to create a MOT Corps
1 x FTR-2 . . . for a reason I can't remember
1 x NAV-3 . . . for Atlantic Convoy protection (not to distant future)
1 x SUB . . . to join the 3 I have already in Iceland, to counter Germany and support the CW pipelines

Did I do very badly? Or was this suitable?

Perhaps I focused too much on making sure my CVs were all filled to capacity. I suppose I could have left the CVP in the Reserve Pool and spent the BP for 1 Pilot per turn on a new TRS. That would have gotten me most of the extra sealift on its 1st cycle, I suppose.

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I would make much heavier expenditures on CVs, TRS, and AMPHs. They cost very little so 3 of them can be build each turn even when you only have 11 BPs available.

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ORIGINAL: Red Prince

So far it sounds like my USA builds have been acceptable, which is reassuring given that I've probably completely screwed u pthe CW builds . . . or so it would seem (I can post those later). I still think Steve's point about having more TRS on the 1st cycle means I should have built 1 less Pilot per turn and used it on the TRS, but I didn't know at the time, so I'll forgive myself . . .

Here's the CW Production schedule from the start of the game:

S/O '39: CW (13): 3 x MIL, 2 x CV(1st), 2 x CVP-0, 1 x NAV-3
N/D '39: CW (13): 3 x MIL, 3 x CVP-1, 2 x CV(2nd)
J/F '40: CW (19): 1 x HQ-I, 1 x GARR, 1 x TRS(1st), 1 x FTR-2 1 x LND-4, 1 x BB(Repair), 1 x Pilot
M/A '40: CW (19): 1 x INF, 1 x GARR, 1 x CV(1st), 2 x TRS(1st), 2 x FTR-2, 2 x Pilot
M/J '40: CW (19): 3 x TERR, 1 x AMPH(1st), 1 x FTR-3, 2 x CVP-1, 1 x CL(2nd), 1 x SUB(2nd), 2 x Pilot

So, here's what we have:

3 x TERR
6 x MIL
2 x GARR
1 x INF
1 x HQ-I
3 x CV (1st cycle)
2 x CV (2nd cycle)
3 x TRS (1st cycle)
1 x AMPH (1st cycle)
1 x BB (Repair)
1 x SUB (2nd cycle)
1 x CL (2nd cycle)
7 x CVP
1 x NAV-3
3 x FTR-2
1 x FTR-3
1 x LND-4
5 x Pilot

I can't even begin to try to tell you where everything is, and it should be easy enough to figure out when things are arriving.

My major problem here is that my CVs have never been filled up to capacity, and the randomly picked CVP never seem to be worthwhile. I'm going to need to start building more again, because the RAF has been almost as bad as the RN in combat. I have an extreme CVP shortage at the moment, and while I have some Pilots coming in, I'm going to need more and more as time goes on.

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ORIGINAL: Red Prince

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I would make much heavier expenditures on CVs, TRS, and AMPHs. They cost very little so 3 of them can be build each turn even when you only have 11 BPs available.

At the start of the game, there are very few CVs available to build.

As for the rest, I built the GARR units because they were cheap and fit my BP requirements at the time. They were also quickly available to be deployed to places that were unlikely to be attacked -- unless left empty. Dutch Harbor is now safe pretty much for the rest of the game, with the 2 worst GARR units the USA will ever have, and the TRS were doing nothing else at the time. That's the way I figured it, anyway.

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Checking RAW at Pago Pago, I've come to the conclusion that you can reinforce it. It is not CW territory, but US territory. And there aren't any restrictions there (or am I mistaken), only regarding Guam and the Phillippines...?

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ORIGINAL: Shannon V. OKeets

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ORIGINAL: Red Prince

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I would make much heavier expenditures on CVs, TRS, and AMPHs. They cost very little so 3 of them can be build each turn even when you only have 11 BPs available.

At the start of the game, there are very few CVs available to build.

As for the rest, I built the GARR units because they were cheap and fit my BP requirements at the time. They were also quickly available to be deployed to places that were unlikely to be attacked -- unless left empty. Dutch Harbor is now safe pretty much for the rest of the game, with the 2 worst GARR units the USA will ever have, and the TRS were doing nothing else at the time. That's the way I figured it, anyway.

You're right, I hadn't remembered that. There is 1 CV and 3 AMPH/TRS that can be started in 1939. Some more of the latter are available in 1940, but no additional CVs. I would built the CVs ahead once the BP numbers permit. If you don't start building them until 1941, they won't arrive until 1943. That will leave the Japanese a lot of time to take control of SE Asia and the Pacific.

The real problem here is that Japan is rolling over China quickly and taking extremely few losses while doing so. It is much easier for Japan to fight one major power at a time. When it has to deal with both a land and naval major power (one of each) things get really hard every impulse, and every turn.

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ORIGINAL: Shannon V. OKeets

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ORIGINAL: Red Prince

So far it sounds like my USA builds have been acceptable, which is reassuring given that I've probably completely screwed u pthe CW builds . . . or so it would seem (I can post those later). I still think Steve's point about having more TRS on the 1st cycle means I should have built 1 less Pilot per turn and used it on the TRS, but I didn't know at the time, so I'll forgive myself . . .

Here's the CW Production schedule from the start of the game:

S/O '39: CW (13): 3 x MIL, 2 x CV(1st), 2 x CVP-0, 1 x NAV-3
N/D '39: CW (13): 3 x MIL, 3 x CVP-1, 2 x CV(2nd)
J/F '40: CW (19): 1 x HQ-I, 1 x GARR, 1 x TRS(1st), 1 x FTR-2 1 x LND-4, 1 x BB(Repair), 1 x Pilot
M/A '40: CW (19): 1 x INF, 1 x GARR, 1 x CV(1st), 2 x TRS(1st), 2 x FTR-2, 2 x Pilot
M/J '40: CW (19): 3 x TERR, 1 x AMPH(1st), 1 x FTR-3, 2 x CVP-1, 1 x CL(2nd), 1 x SUB(2nd), 2 x Pilot

So, here's what we have:

3 x TERR
6 x MIL
2 x GARR
1 x INF
1 x HQ-I
3 x CV (1st cycle)
2 x CV (2nd cycle)
3 x TRS (1st cycle)
1 x AMPH (1st cycle)
1 x BB (Repair)
1 x SUB (2nd cycle)
1 x CL (2nd cycle)
7 x CVP
1 x NAV-3
3 x FTR-2
1 x FTR-3
1 x LND-4
5 x Pilot

I can't even begin to try to tell you where everything is, and it should be easy enough to figure out when things are arriving.

My major problem here is that my CVs have never been filled up to capacity, and the randomly picked CVP never seem to be worthwhile. I'm going to need to start building more again, because the RAF has been almost as bad as the RN in combat. I have an extreme CVP shortage at the moment, and while I have some Pilots coming in, I'm going to need more and more as time goes on.

Count your current on map carriers. Assume they are filled to capacity. Now hypothesize they are in a sea area where Japan has NAV (2) and fighter (2) cover. Japan then moves its fleet, with all its carriers into the sea area. What does the air-to-air combat look like? What do the naval bombing forces for each side look like? My guess is that Japan will have an awesome advantage and could eliminate every one of the US carriers in one or two rounds of combat.

That is what the US has to plan for. Those carrier battles can be emotionally exhausting for all concerned - look what happened at Midway where Japan had a 5:2 advantage in carriers.

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ORIGINAL: Orm

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Checking RAW at Pago Pago, I've come to the conclusion that you can reinforce it. It is not CW territory, but US territory. And there aren't any restrictions there (or am I mistaken), only regarding Guam and the Phillippines...?

Only restriction to reinforce Pago Pago has already been played in this game so US should relocate some un its there soon.

Until you choose relocate fleet to Pearl Harbor the only naval units that may base at Honolulu or Pago Pago are TRSs and CONVs. After you have chosen it, any US naval unit can base there.