Red Prince
Posts: 3686
Joined: 4/8/2011 From: Bangor, Maine, USA Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: paulderynck quote:
ORIGINAL: Red Prince quote:
ORIGINAL: paulderynck quote:
ORIGINAL: Orm quote:
USA adds Brzilian, Mexican and Panamanian units to its Force Pools Since US still has plenty of units to build I think it was to early to add these units to the Force Pool. I would never add them and consider this a bad mistake (although understandable for a noob). This is even more true for a build startegy like the US has used in this game, which does not concentrate on sea lift. You're going to move the US units first and even when/if you are built out in TRS and Amphs, it's difficult to divert any to move these practically useless units. You will rue this decision every time you build one of these poor units while good US Mech, Mot and Inf sits in the force pool. Don't forget to "harvest" their pilots. They do a lot better flying US planes that can cooperate with the CW and FF than flying lower range, lower combat factor planes that cannot. The same cooperation issue applies to their land forces and thus makes them an impediment. They can't go to the home country of another allied major power, nor to any aligned (by any ally, including the US) minor. (You harvest them by taking the at-start plane off from a home city of theirs and increasing the US pilot marker by one. Then in a subsequent turn, they man a US plane.) Occasionally you can use at-start Mexicans to garrison places in the Pacific (if on anti-partisan duty in Japan, you are doing real well). And occasionally you can put at start Brazillians in Italy (but usually not because they can't stack with CW units). I don't think it's really a mistake. There are no current units from any of these countries in the Force Pools, and there are exactly 2 x FTR-2 popping up in 1942, when the USA will have 68 BP to spend each turn, and 2 x MECH to arrive in 1943, when they'll have 79 BP to spend per turn. I think that over those 2 years, they can probably afford the "lost" 18 BP by building these units. That is just about 2% of the 12-turn total expected BP produced. That isn't really a big deal. We may differ on the impact but it really is a mistake. The BPs spent when you draw them are basically a complete waste. Saying you have a surfeit of BPs is a poor rationale indeed. The wondeful thing (and the curse) about the US is that there's always good stuff to build. Plus by '43 you'll want an O-chit every turn so you can get the stuff to where it needs to go. (Super - Combined) Would you ever do it again after considering the downsides (and lack of any upside except a few pilots, Edit: which you normally get anyway when going to war at the usual time in '42)? There are currently 145 BP of land units in the Force Pool, 60 BP in 1st cycle naval units, and 88 BP in air units, which could use as many as 86 BP in Pilots, though about half that would actually be needed. That's 293 BP (not including Pilots). Add in 44 BP from the Repair Pool, including CW and French units, and you've got 337 BP of units. That's for 1941, and doesn't include Build Ahead units. The last 3 turns of this year, the USA will produce 168 BP. Next year, 1942, 54 BP of land units, 45 BP of new 1st cycle naval units, and 104 BP of air units will be added. Throw in 122 BP of 2nd cycle naval units, and you get 325 more BP worth of units to spend to build everything. (Yes, I know there will be destroyed units to rebuild . . . this is just a simple assessment of how important those 18 BP actually are). Over the course of this year, the USA will produce 408 BP. In 1943, 74 more BP of land units, another 60 BP of 1st cycle naval units, 123 BP of air units, and 89 BP of 2nd cycle naval units are added to the Force Pool. That's 346 BP. For 1943, the USA will produce 474 BP. So, over the course of 15 turns, not including Pilots and assuming I completely build out all possible naval units, there are 1,008 BP of units to spend on. Over that same time-frame, the USA will have 1,050 BP to spend. If I want to build a Pilot for 2/3 of the aircraft, that brings the total to about 1,200 vs 1,050 BP. The fact is, there are a number of units I'm going to want to scrap rather than build, or I'm going to want to replace obsolete aircraft with the best available. What I'm saying, is that during the stretch when these 4 units become available, the total cost of building them amounts to a single O-chit and an INF, assuming I give the FTRs each a Pilot. If I don't, it costs less than an O-chit to build them. So, the answer to your question is: When the USA enters the war this early in future games, sure I'll add these nations to the Force Pools. The reason being that the majority of the forces already start on the map for free . . . and if I get into a situation where I actually lose some of them, it means I probably will need them again. Now, if the USA enters the war a year later, the situation is different. In that case I'd likely have about 350 fewer BP to spend over those 15 turns and that makes a difference. ----- Edit: What I'm really saying when it comes right down to it, is that I don't see 4 units that cost a total of 14 BP as making or breaking the American push simply by being built. Therefore, when entering the war this early, I can't think of it as a "big mistake" to add them to the Force Pools.
< Message edited by Red Prince -- 2/1/2012 12:45:53 AM >
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Always listen to experts. They'll tell you what can't be done and why. Then do it! -Lazarus Long, RAH
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