Slitherine

quote:

ORIGINAL: brian brian

I think in Vanman's first referenced game an Axis decision to stop in 1941 might indicate a weak German 'Barbarossa' attack - a lot of force left in the West, or in the Med. A 1941 Barbarossa is one of the most powerful Axis strategies. Sometimes the reality of that won't be seen until the summer 1942 turns however. But if Russia is strongly invested in the Far East during a 1941 Barbarossa, they should be paying a price in Europe.

One solution to this perceived problem (I don't completely agree that it is a problem), is to use Chinese Attack Weakness. The Chinese are ridiculously over-powered in the game as compared to history, including the Chinese Communists. Some players don't like it, because they want to attack things and feel using Attack Weakness isn't "fair". Aside from the realism of the Chinese pieces, they greatly benefit from being able to take a land impulse every single time, which Japan can not.

One shortcut we take via House Rule is to include the ChiComms in the Attack Weakness.

I would like to see the game formally address the Chinese capabilities in some future edition by making the Chinese Nationalists subject to US Activity Limits. Which has a solid basis in history as the Americans had to continually cajole Chiang to do anything at all in the war, and spent probably dozens of Build Points to achieve essentially none of their War Aims via China. The Chinese contributed a few divisions of infantry, totally at American expense, to the inconsequential Burma front, and that was it.


As for what Japan can do given the state of the game, one is to wait for a common USSR attack on Persia and then attack the USSR itself. This gives them some oil and puts many USSR resources, and one factory, at risk, with the Japanese holding the strategic initiative, something different from, and more valuable, than the turn by turn initiative. The danger of a successful 1941 Barbarossa for the Axis is so high that it is not a bad choice for the Russians to leave a bare minimum of delaying forces against the Japanese while they pray the Panzers can't reach Baku and cross the Volga, which they frequently can if the Allies are slack on preventing that. If the Russians want to get serious in Manchuria in 1940, the Germans can reap the reward as the Russians discover the through-put limits on their railroads, trying to move factories and troops at the same time.

In a 1942 Barbarossa scenario, Japan is in a tougher spot. But here again, consider alternatives. It is fun to build those wonderful mid-war Japanese CVs, but what Japan really needs to do is build out their ground force pool, and keep it empty. As an absolute priority. A CV is a 7-8 BP investment in a piece that might only fight one battle, and is essentially a piece for carrying the fight to the enemy. Land-based air is a far cheaper way to defend the Empire. (Hint: by mid-war, consider an air impulse at times for Japan). If Japan also keeps their FTR2 and NAV pool empty, they have many quality units to confront the Americans with. A 6 point air combat long range Zero can fight the USA at least twice and possibly three times for the same price as a CV. The junkier designs can be used to game the Partisan rules in Korea and China, while anything with an air-to-sea factor can fight the US Submarines, one of Japan's most key battles.

For Japan I would also consider specialty units, though they are expensive. A mechanized division with local garrisons and a LND3 can be pretty handy for dealing with Chinese raids. Paratroopers can also threaten Chinese and Russian rear areas, possibly arriving escorted by Zeroes if necessary. One blocked rail hex and the USSR loses up to four resources, possibly at a critical time.

But overall Japan is an egg-shell power, still defeated despite the USA's "Europe First" policy in history. The best way to defend Japan is to be successful with Germany.