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Official 1939 World At War AAR/Walkthrough


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This turn was a fairly interesting turn. I have a lot going on behind the scenes. What is holding me back at the moment is income. The UK has sooo much it can do… all the parts but I need to put them together… but it takes much greater time to prepare because of the lack of cash.

That said one part was finally ready… Strategic bombing began in a big way this turn.

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The UK hammered Kiel with 4 strategic strikes from 2 upgraded heavy bombers attached to a HQ. I was able to get hits on all 4 strikes with “no” damage to my bombers. Why is Kiel important? Notice the convoy line running through it? So… with any luck I was able to seriously crimp Germany’s income from Norway. If I did 2 per hit… it will take a while before the port rebuilds itself… especially if I hammer the port again. If it turns white from blue I've done my job.

There was absolutely no air defense. I would hazard Goering has some explaining to do.

This is only the beginning. Germany is already hurting income wise… so anything I can do to help make it worse… I will.

In China, Jim pushed up to my line and launched some attacks which did limited damage to the units on the line. 2 Chinese corps hammered back at a Japanese corps doing solid damage. Remember I mentioned I purchased 2 HQ right off? That’s why. Having only 1 Chinese HQ’s in the south is a real weakness. Now I have 3!!!

I feel the Japanese player need to attack just as soon as he is able to do so in the South… within 4 or 5 turns of the game beginning…. Well before the Chinese have the opportunity to build up there. The Japanese player needs to be able to push the Chinese player back as soon as possible and keep pushing lest the Chinese player gets too strong. I think Jim may have given me way too much time to prepare and as a result he will pay for it loss wise. He may ultimately push me back but it will be much more costly than it is worth.

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Because I have 2 HQs handy near the line I wanted to show some of the boost to supply and readiness it is giving the Chinese line.

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Here is one of the Japanese units on the line at strength 9. I did not attack him.

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The Japanese unit came from good supply before it moved... hence the good readiness and morale. Notice that there is no Japanese HQ in view. This units’ morale and readiness will soon begin to degrade as a result of the poor supply.

I expect Jim to have a hard slog in China beginning just when he is preparing for his big offensive in the pacific.

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Does this demoralization also works on marine units? That would be very new then.

Hi Amadeus

It only has this effect against land and air units bombed on the ground.

I'm not sure that it would be appropriate to have the same effect against naval units, because if they aren't directly hit (including splashes) then they survive air attacks unscathed. But with land and air units there will generally be some damage and effect on their operations, even if it is only temporary.

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I feel the Japanese player need to attack just as soon as he is able to do so in the South… within 4 or 5 turns of the game beginning…. Well before the Chinese have the opportunity to build up there. The Japanese player needs to be able to push the Chinese player back as soon as possible and keep pushing lest the Chinese player gets too strong. I think Jim may have given me way too much time to prepare and as a result he will pay for it loss wise. He may ultimately push me back but it will be much more costly than it is worth.

I aggree with you. The time ist working for China. If they get enough time to buy HQ's, research inf tech 1 and build fortifications (the have engineers in the south from the beginning), their positions get almost invulnerable because of too many fortresses and the bad terrain. And since last patch with the swap-hotfix it is much more difficult to conquer these fortresses.

I have chosen a different China-strategy and South-China is in mid-1940 nearly in japanese hands. But the price is very high. It took about 2500 japanese MPP and nearly 3000 from china.

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Notice that there is no Japanese HQ in view.

Just 'cuz it's not in view doesn't mean it's not there :)

Unlike the Allied side, the Axis side has no hesitation in using all technological means at its disposal (such as Photoshop) to ensure that maps we issue to the press are not TOO informative :P

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This The UK hammered Kiel with 4 strategic strikes ... There was absolutely no air defense. I would hazard Goering has some explaining to do.

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(GAME NOTE: Stupidly, I neglected Kiel and had fighters and anti-air on other targets that I thought would be more likely subjects for British attention. If you make on mistake with Marc, he will make you pay, rest assured!)

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DATELINE BERLIN: FEB 16/41

The Greek government is now paying for its ill-advised friendly overtures to Great Britain. Instead of seeking the protection of a mighty wolf, the Greeks foolishly adopted a toothless lion.

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No pictures this time. It seems clear that Jim is evacuating German grounds units from Egypt. My offensive there is pretty much ready to go. I decided to hold back a turn or two as there is no rush. I have a number of initiatives going on around the globe... I would rather get them better prepared first before I have to spend money repairing units that are part of an Egypt offensive.

Strategic bombing again of Kiel with no fighter defense. I think I bombed the port to 0. I took casualties this turn. In asia... I hammered a Japanese army inflicting heavy casualties on him and forcing him to retreat.

Elsewhere Jim is building up on the Eastern Front. I expect an invasion as soon as the weather becomes fair.

Not much else beyond that... it is soon about to become very exciting.

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Just 'cuz it's not in view doesn't mean it's not there :)

Unlike the Allied side, the Axis side has no hesitation in using all technological means at its disposal (such as Photoshop) to ensure that maps we issue to the press are not TOO informative :P

Glad to see I'm not the only one who does this!! ;)

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I conducted a number of strategic raids across Europe and even sent a BB to bombard a port... for recon. It will be interesting to see if Jim's navy comes out to engage me.

41-KielConvoy.jpg

As you can see by this picture... last turn I was able to hammer Kiel hard enough to shut down the convoy from Norway.

In the Atlantic I was able to sink a U-Boat on the Canadian convoy route as well.

Russia continues to prepare for the coming German offensive. Japan seems to be struggling in China. I just need a little tech and I can make the Japanese existance in China very difficult.

Beyond that... not much else to discuss. I have a lot going on behind the scenes.

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DATELINE BERLIN: Our mighty parachute corps has conducted another successful operation, this time against Crete. Opposition was virtually non-existent.

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In further developments, the King George V was bombed and heavily damaged. Why it was snooping around near Amsterdam is a mystery.

DATELINE TOKYO: Little news to report, other than the Japanese forces in southern China have pulled away from the Chinese lines. Imperial HQ says that the movements are for a couple of reasons: upgrading of equipment, and to make room in the front line for reinforcements recently arrived from Japan.

(GAME NOTE: German income is looking fairly decent now that Greece and Yugoslavia, along with minor Axis allies, are all contributing to the national treasury. Italy is rolling in cash, but has limited build options (only light tanks, for example). But the Regia Aeronautica is looking pretty spiffy. Japan has been suffering from a lack of HQ's in China, which has now been remedied. The Japanese land-based air is now more than sufficient to help with operations, meaning the navy can now go home and refit for other future operations)

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Well… this was a very interesting turn for the Allies.

The long awaited UK offensive in North Africa and Italian East Africa finally got underway. My north Africa offensive includes 2 British armies, 5 corps, 1 armor supported by 2 fighters and tactical bombers. They began advancing toward the Italian line near Tobruk, while British commonwealth forces began assaulting Italian position in IEA.

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Land based fighters in Egypt had engaged German fighters over Tobruk, while in a surprise movement… a large surface Fleet, which included 3 aircraft carriers, launched airstrikes against the ground based German airbases behind Tobruk, with devastating results.

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In the process of eliminating the German air defenses around Tobruk, an Italian convoy was discovered transporting a German division attempting to flee Africa.

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The Italians thought air defenses sufficient to defend this vulnerable convoy. I am sure the German High Command is furious at their Italian allies for failing to properly escort this convoy.

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Both the German transport and fighter were eliminated…. paving the way for a massive assault on Italian lines next turn.

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General O’Conner reports that the spirits of the men run high. He is confident they will acquit themselves as befit British soldiers.

I expect there is a good change the remaining battle wagons and cruisers of the Italian navy may sail to hammer one of my carriers. I felt the risk of losing two or more British carriers was worth it to destroy the German fighter in Africa and cut off any further chance of escape. An added plus in my mind is that if the Italian navy sorties I will be able to catch them and maybe destroy the rest of the Italian fleet, making it easier to pull off an invasion of the mainland at a later date.

In Asia… no real action. The Japanese pulled back slightly and the Chinese are celebrating.

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Just a quick note this turn---the only Axis action was in the Mediterranean, where a British cruiser near Crete was heavily damaged. I declined to send in what was left of the Italian fleet, as it may come in handy later in the war, especially when it has new units added. The Italian naval focus now needs to shift to submarines, as they can be very effective anti-invasion tools and are relatively inexpensive to build. Building more BB's at this point takes too long, and just gives the RN more targets for their carriers.

Japan continues to build up in China. In retrospect, I might have been better served if I had pushed harder in the interior of China early in the game, but my focus was on securing the coastal cities first, and also on building up the Japanese navy.

All-in-all, the overall strategic plan is still on track.

And yes, it was a big gamble sending the 23rd division out of North Africa. He wasn't actually escaping, as Marc had speculated. It was an amphibious operation, intended for Crete. I thought, before Crete fell, that I would have to attack it, even though Greece had surrendered. But, I was wrong---Crete falls under Axis control with the surrender of Greece. I'll know better next time :)

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Jim left his Italian bomber on Crete… primarily because he used it to hammer a RN cruiser. That was an expensive mistake.

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There were 3 carriers nearby and all three struck the Italian airfields with devastating result.

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I was able to successfully destroy the Italian medium bomber. My north African campaign has already claimed 1 German Fighter, 1 German Division and an Italian medium bomber.

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British ground forces pushed forward slamming into Italian positions with devastating results.

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Here you can see my attack going in. This is after airstrikes.

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I was able to get both the Italian army and corps to retreat with heavy losses.

In asia… no action to speak of.

I am expecting invasion of the USSR any turn.

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Sorry for the delay in getting my turn done and posted. Unfortunately I have a small computer-related technical issue to overcome. I'm sure it will be resolved before too long; certainly by afternoon (Atlantic Canada Time Zone)

Meanwhile, since Marc already told me about my goof-up in leaving the bomber on Crete, I can use the extra time to consider how to get the Italian/German war effort back on track.

Thank you, all, for your patience :)

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I just want to comment on the earlier strike against the Italian fleet units that were effectively in port. This rather mirrored the actual raid on Taranto although of course that was when the countries were at war.

The actual outcome of Taranto was that only one of the sunk/damaged Italian ships was not eventually refloated and repaired.

I think it is a good idea for the game/scenario settings to match the reality of the Taranto and Pearl attacks by allowing naval ships sunk in port to be rebuilt at a fraction of the cost and delay of constructing new ships. Some reward for a sneak attack would still exist but it would not be as devastating as total loss of the opponent's units.

I do not know what the re-build settings are in AOD but I would suggest that naval units with supply 10 should be capable of rebuilds at something like 20% of the cost and delay.

Regards

Mike

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Hi Crispy

Determining whether a ship is really located in a port has been rather complicated in Gold as there were not enough port locations so ships near a port are probably intended to be in a port but the game does not allow stacking. Thus I have tended to be fairly relaxed about allowing rebuilds in my Axis Triumphant scenario. It seems to turn out that it is more often reasonable than not allowing them is unreasonable from a historic perspective! If you examine the fate of battleships in particular in WW2 a significant number of them were sunk whilst in ports - Taranto, Pearl, Alexandria, Mers El Kebir, Tirpitz. Of course AOD with its larger scale should have more port capacity but it might be onerous to have to check the precise location.

I doubt very much that it would have a game changing impact as both sides can potentially benefit but it would help the naval aspects of the game potentially to have more going on.

Regards

Mike

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(GAME NOTE: The technical issue I was dealing with is now resolved, a bit later than I had hoped for. But, my next turn is now done and sent off to Marc. I am still undecided about when to launch Barbarossa, but it wasn't this turn, which means of course that Marc's next turn (June 22, 1941) will be ahistorical in the sense that he will not be counting how many Russian units were destroyed in the first attack.

Actually, I will be surprised to find many Russian units exposed to my initial attack when it does go down---Marc will probably keep his most valuable units well back from the front line, unlike the historical record. I will have to earn my kills, there will be no gifts.

The only combat for this turn was in China, near Changsha again, in the eastern part of the mountains. It was inconclusive, but certainly showing better results for Japan than before, as more air is introduced to the theatre.)

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Turn wise… lots going on behind the scenes. I am not surprised Jim decided to delay his offensive on Russia. I suspect that Germany is hurting income wise… from giving France to Italy. That said… the Axis has a lot of cash. Italy is likely building up fast. So it is likely only a matter of time until he invades with his units upgraded. If he chooses to really delay… Russia will give him that time as she is only at 53%.

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In North Africa my offensive continued. I decided to bypass Tobruk this turn in favor of finishing off the Italian army and corps. I did not want Jim to get to a position where he could strengthen those units back up. My primary purpose is to defeat his ability to wage an effective war in Africa. You can see by the relative strengths of the town and ports my strategic war combined with holding Malta is making supply in Africa very difficult.

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I was able to take Benghazi and destroy both army and corps. Next turn I will begin working on Tobruk.

We had some action at sea where I was able to damage another U-Boat. Over the last few turns Jim’s U-Boat fleet has taken a bit of a beating. I also hammered a Japanese army… not much else to report at the moment.

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DATELINE BERLIN: The Russian government has indicated some concern about German units near our common border. However, they seem to be happier now that we have explained that these are simple anti-partisan exercises, with no hostile intent towards the USSR.

(GAME NOTE: German income is finally at a reasonable level, and there was more good news for the Axis at the end of the turn---infantry tech is fully developed now. At the risk of facing a stronger Russia in 1942, I am continuing to play the waiting game. I'm not entirely sure how Russian entry works now: it seems to be creeping up, but I think (and hope) that by keeping back from the Russian border to some extent, that it will be slow. I'm also wondering if it is worth spending some diplomatic capital on the Russians to try and make them happy. I do NOT want a pre-emptive attack from the USSR, so once they go above 90, I pretty much will have to attack.)

DATELINE TOKYO:

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(GAME NOTE: Japan is getting ready for other operations aside from China, but this does not mean that I can afford to ignore it. De-entrenchment of the 115th Chinese Corps opens the way to dislodging it from its position. I very much want to be able to attack from that direction when I go after Marc's fortified unit sitting just west of the 115th. The units I pulled back a few turns ago are now looking very rested and ready to go, so that will help when I launch any offensive against Changsha).

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No pictures this turn. Pictures next turn... I am sure.

I hammered a Japanese army down to strength 3 and he retreated. Japanese supply is terrible where the action is going on. Jim needs more HQ's there and closer to the front to do some serious damage.

I took 2 towns in Italian East Africa in the south and have begun advancing northward. I will also be attacking from another direction shortly so the fall of IEA should speed up.

In North Africa... I began pounding Tobruk... knocking the heavily entrenched defender there down to strength 5.

In the Atlantic I found another sub and knocked him down pretty good. He will escape but this is the first turn in a long while that German U-Boats and surface raiders have not struck at my convoy lanes. I think this is a good sign that I have done heavy damage to Jim's U-Boat fleet.

We are now into July 1941 and no attack on Russia. Russian readiness was at 63%. I am also very curious as to what the Japanese are up to. Virtually... no action from them in China since the beginning of the game... means that Jim has likely been building up a massive fleet and the ground units to take as much territory as possible. Hint... The US to this point has primarily only invested in Technology. As soon as the war in the Pacific begins I will tell you a bit of my strategy.

Oh and the US imposed an oil embargo on Japan this turn.

Back to Jim.

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DATELINE TOKYO: A heavy attack by Japanese ground and air forces near Nanning has destroyed a Chinese division. This attack may well have surprised the enemy as it occurred at the extreme opposite end of the Chinese front line in the south.

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(GAME NOTE: German income continues to strengthen, and hopefully research into industrial and production tech will soon pay off to make it even better.)

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