itkotw2000
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Joined: 8/27/2005
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As others have said, I too tend to keep the German navy (subs included) in the Baltic at least until France falls, usually longer. I don't boost the German navy much, but I do buy a few more destroyers and some maritime bombers. In most of 1941, I only leave the Baltic to pick off Allied ships that try to raid my convoys from Norway (the short route, I always change the convoy route). But after I pick off a ship, I hide back in the Baltic. Once my destroyers and maritime bombers arrive (and pretty much all of the ships that are in the production pipeline from the beginning), I send the German fleet out.
I start by making a picket line near Norway's coast with my subs, but far enough away from England so their planes cant interfere and their ships cant strike and go back to port. Due west of Trondhiem is my usual spot. I don't raid the Russian convoy route just yet. I form the picket line of subs (silent mode) running east/west (not north/south), either side by side or a hex apart. While the subs form a line away from the coast I hide the rest of the fleet closer to shore (but close enough to easily support the subs) and wait... The AI ALWAYS figures out that your subs are in the area on the next turn, even if you aren't raiding the convoy. They will send a destroyer out and it will run into your line of subs. They will send every destroyer they have in the area, expect to get hit with 4-6 destroyers. Because your sub are in silent mode and spread-out the destroyers will tend to bump into random subs while they are trying to travel to the first one. Then they try to gang up on the second one and hit a third. This chain reaction of random encounters will cause light damage over many subs instead of getting one or two sunk.
On the next turn your main capital ships strike at the destroyers. Even destroyers can be hard to kill, so you wont be able to get them all. I would surround the few destroyers you cant kill with your capital ships. While your capital ships are busy, your subs have two options. One - the subs can be used to pick off the few remaining destroyers, as long as the losses aren't too high, it can be useful to get those ships sunk. Option two - your subs fall back TOWARD England 3 or 4 hexes forming another picket line between your surface fleet and the probable direction of the incoming British fleet. This picket line of subs does two things, it protects your surface fleet by intercepting incoming enemy capital ships and it intercepts the retreating destroyers. The destroyers will run home, but run into your subs. Any incoming capital ships wont be able to deal with your subs, so it will buy your surface fleet time.
If things really go wrong, like the British throw their whole fleet at your surface fleet, your sub picket line will buy your main fleet time to run and hide back in the Baltic or at least get closer to Germany. If the whole enemy fleet is thrown at me I will try to destroy the remaining destroyers (this protects my subs in the near future) and retreat my surface ships toward Germany, while staying near the coast of Norway. I will send one sub ahead of in my line of retreat to scout and I will use my other subs to create a screen for my fleet while they run home (usually my subs are between my fleet and England if their fleet hasn't been spotted). As you get nearer to German waters you can strike at their surface fleet if they push their attack. In a single turn (movement points permitting) find one or two of their heaviest ships (BB or CV) and strike at them with every thing you have and sink them. Then, in the same turn, run to a safe zone (after this last ditch attack make sure your ships end their turn in German ports or in the Baltic). I try to make sure my fleet ALWAYS has a clear route back to German waters and I never retreat northward (I only go north in life or death situations). If a few of my ships get "stuck" in northern ports in Norway, I send my subs fleet to rescue them. Since I just destroyed most of their destroyers, the enemy can't deal with my subs even if they wanted to (they might have one or two destroyers left, but one or two is not that dangerous).
My German fleet always uses this cat and mouse type attack. Lure destroyers with subs, attack destroyers to lure main fleet, attack main fleet, and RUN! The German CV and shore based maritime bombers help to pick off the ships with one or two strength left (I like to put the bombers in Norway on the coastal towns or in Demark to cover my retreating fleet).
After you have destroyed all of their destroyers and some of their heavier ships, your fleet can do what ever it wants.
< Message edited by itkotw -- 12/8/2016 4:12:17 AM >
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Best strategy for the German navy - 
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