Ralph Boerke's Tribute to Axis & Allies
Disclaimer: Axis & Allies is a registered trademark of Milton Bradley. The use of their trademark 'Axis & Allies' by Tacit Memnos Infinitum is not approved by Milton Bradley.
Overall Strategy: [Top]
Germany is a nation that is fighting a two front war. Well actually three fronts if Africa is included. Its two main opponents are the USSR and the UK. But the USA can easily send amphibious forces to Europe and Africa.
The USSR only has one avenue to the Reich and that is through Eastern Europe. It will usually on the first turn take one of the three territories: Finland-Norway, Eastern Europe and the Ukraine. It has a large base of resources in its east and can usually generate at least 5 Infantry (later in the game) and up to 10 Infantry per turn (at the beginning) that it will throw into its defenses in Karelia and the Caucasus.
Germany must use its Armour to attack the USSR. With this advantage in attacking strength Germany can try to gain both the Caucasus and Karelia and then pounce upon the capitol territory, Russia. A very good first purchase is to buy four Infantry and four Armour with which to hit the USSR hard.
The UK is a less predictable opponent. If the UK has a fleet it can start to harass Germany in Finland-Norway, Western Europe, and Algeria. It can also start to reinforce the Soviet defenses in Karelia. In Africa and India it only has a few units with which to stop an Axis takeover of its colonial possessions.
Germany must use its Naval and Air units to destroy the UK fleet and to prevent a new fleet from appearing. This requires Airpower. An investment in a second Bomber or a new Fighter can be useful especially if Germany loses some airforces in the first melee. As the presence of a strong Airforce will require the UK to purchase a large naval force all at once and this may take some time (perhaps a three turns). Unfortunately Germany must also purchase land units to fight the USSR and one aircraft can represent four or five Infantry. So a good scenario will involve Germany keeping its initial airforce, which is sometimes a hard task, and purchasing land units only.
Africa is a good area to have as it is worth 9 IPCs to Germany. By using the Battleship and Transport in the Mediterranean it can drop off two Infantry from Southern Europe and use the Libyan forces to conquer Egypt. However the Submarine may take out the Battleship which does not get a Shore Bombardment shot anyway. Also the UK may then use its Indian forces to retake Egypt. Though this will help Japan it will not help Germany in taking Africa.
Usually I try to use the 50-50 odds of the Libyan forces vs the Egyptian. As I will usually be using the Mediterranean fleet to amphibious assault the Caucasus. Remember to blitz through French Equatorial Africa. If I win Egypt then good if not then concentrate on the USSR at most Germnay loses 2 IPCs in Libya and Algeria.
Good tactics to use against the USSR: I call this the Panzer feint. A large force of Armour and Infantry is used against a larger force of enemy Infantry and only attacking for one or two rounds. In this way you can make the enemy lose two Infantry for each of your losses or at least cause him more damage than you receive. An example of this is: four Infantry and eight Armour attacking twelve Infantry. On average the enemy will lose 4.7 Infantry while the attacker will only lose 4 Infantry. (The averages are from fractions of dice; 1/6 of a hit for Infantry and 3/6 for Armour and 2/6 for defenders). After the first round the attacker retreats. In this way the defender loses 3 IPCs more than the attacker and the attacker can reinforce his large Armoured force with more cheap Infantry. With better odds we can have the defender crushed from a large force down to a small one with a minor loss of Infantry on the attacker's side. BUT one must be careful to not win the battle as then your Armour is committed to the conquered territory and may be vulnerable to an enemy counter attack. A better example: four Infantry and eight Armour attacking eight Infantry. Here the attacker gets 4.7 hits while the defender get 2.6 hits. If done for two rounds the attacker can lose his four Infantry while the defender loses seven Infantry (nine IPCs difference)!
An excellent use of this tactic is at the beginning against Karelia. Use the Finland-Norway and Eastern Europe forces (and Armour from Germany and Southern Europe) to attack for one round and then retreat all units to Eastern Europe. This way you can save the Finland Armour as eventually Finland-Norway will be lost to the Allies.
The Strategy to use is to go for the USSR first. If Africa can be taken quickly and the USSR held off of German territory then it can be taken but do not invest too much into it. A minor investment of a second Transport for the Mediterranean can be useful in both African and Caucasian campaigns. Moving a small force from Persia into the USSR is also nice to have but one should count on the Japanese to move into Novosibersk and Kazakhstan around the same time as Germany is closing in on Russia from Karelia and Caucasus (hopefully by the fourth or fifth turn). A good tactic to use is to take the Caucasus (i.e. own all three southern East European territories) before taking Karelia.
Once the UK has a fleet be careful to not leave Armour in Karelia. The UK will attack a relatively strong force in Karelia and wipe out the Infantry and then the USSR can attack the naked Armour. Also the US might take advantage of a UK fleet and also send a small force to help in Africa or Europe.
A Good tactic to use is to station Bombers and Fighters in Western Europe so they can attack any new ships in the Eastern USA and UK sea zones. But also leave a few Fighters for defense in Eastern Europe or the Ukraine. Eastern Europe is good as it is in range of the UK sea zone and any Fighters from Western Europe can then land in Eastern Europe (i.e. switch positions).
Be careful. While defending Western Europe and concentrating on Karelia note the presence of a UK fleet and count how many men are available for the US and Uk that can reach Karelia. These forces can also be directed against the capitol! You may purchase 10 Infantry each turn and place them on Germany to move to Eastern Europe and then to Ukrain or Karelia ... but even with 10 Infantry the presence of a Fighter can improve the defenses of the capitol especially when the UK and USA have eight or so Transports which can drop 16 Infantry on Germany.
First Moves: [Top]
Africa: The Infantry from Algeria should move to French West Africa. 1 IPC. The Infantry and Armour should attack Egypt. The odds are 50% at present and unless you plan to bring in more units via the Transport this will be as good as it gets. Do not forget to blitz the Armour through french Equatorial Africa.
The UK Fleets: Submarine in the Atlantic should be used to attack the Gibraltor Battleship. Airpower should be used to attack the UK Home Fleet. The actual attacks depend on if the USSR fleet is part of the UK Home fleet and if the German Uboat and Transport in the Baltic have survived.
The Eastern Front: Again it depends on what the USSR has done. Regaining any lost territory is the goal but taking another territory of equal value can be a good substitute especially if you destroy the USSR Armour and/or Fighters. If two territories can be captured here then better.
The Mediterranean Fleet: This can be used in an Amphibious Assault or to transport units to Libya. The Assaults are the Caucasus or Egypt. The Caucasus allows the Battlship to use its Shore Bombardment shot. Egypt however is protected by a UK Submarine. This Sub must be defeated and then the Battlship does not get its shot.
Air Power: Again this is usually used to take out the UK Fleet units in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Assuming a bad USSR attack that leaves Germany with its five Fighters and a Bomber. One Fighter can be used to accompany the Sub against the Gibraltor Battlaship. One Fighter can be used to attack the Submarine in the Mediterranean. Three Fighters can be used against the UK Home Fleet and the Bomber can go after the UK Transport off of Eastern Canada.
Purchases: I usually like four Armour and four Infantry to keep up my mobile forces of Armour and also add a bit of Infantry for defense. On later turns I will usually take two or three Armour and the rest in Infantry as Infantry is required to counter the USSR buildup of Infantry. Another option is to purchase 10 Infantry the first turn and then 6 Armour the second so that on the third you have both of these forces available to fight Karelia or Ukraine.
Alternate Targets in the First Move: [Top]
Using Airforces against the USSR. This can be done but it will allow the UK to start the amphibious offensives against Algeria, Western Europe and Finland-Norway almost immediately. Without Japanese help for Germany it can not hope to defeat the USSR even with all of its airpower. And Japanese help requires time.
Alternate Purchases: I tried a German Aircraft Carrier in the Mediterranean once. I did not win the game but the Carrier did protect my fleet and allow me to take Africa.
All Infantry. This can not hurt too much so long as you still have some Armour somewhere for future attacks. In this case you must save your Armour and the use of the 'panzer fient' is helpful.
Transport in the Mediterranean. This is useful to protect the fleet and allow for a stronger hit against future targets of the Caucasus or Africa or even venturing into the Indian Ocean (Suez captured i.e. Egypt and Syria) and then going to Brazil, Australia or South Africa. A larger fleet can also be used to destroy a large Allied fleet if it comes within range of Axis Air AND Sea power.
Bad Dice: [Top]
Germany fails against the USSR in Eastern Europe. This is disastrous as it allows the USSR to move its front to Germany's doorstep. This buffer takes Germany longer to defeat.
Failure to destroy the UK Fleet. This will also mean that Germany has (probably) lost its airpower. Both of these are disastrous and will allow the UK (and USA) to start attacking Western Europe or Southern Europe from the Mediterranean and Africa or to start funneling men through Finland-Norway and Karelia.
In either of these cases Germany must defend the bunker with Infantry and holdout until Japan can come to its rescue. Gaining Karelia is important but can be costly especially with UK/USA and USSR one-two punches against it.
To the Next Chapter: UK
|
Axis & Allies email: |
|
|
