Capt Andrew

When playing Allies, I used to max out diplomacy investments for Russia. I had about a 1 in 20 success rate at getting Russia involved sooner. I've come to the conclusion that it wasn't worth it (to me). I'd much rather have the 600 MPP, which would buy an extra aircraft carrier and fighter unit! Those two units have better than a 1 in 20 chance of changing the game!

I enjoyed the game too Bill! Allied reflections on the game: This was my first venture into a PvP with this mini-campaign. I enjoyed it, and it really renewed my interest in the full campaign. I recommend this (and the other mini scenarios) for anyone feeling a little "burned out" from Operation Z... although it's hard to get burned out on that one! Without a doubt, my success in this match was due to three factors. First, the Japs were aggressive in the Arakan. Matching that aggression and inflicting any losses there for the Japs meant they wouldn't be able to send needed reinforcements to critical units pushing towards Imphal or Kohima. When this southern front collapsed, I was able to chase the Japs east towards Mandalay (ensuring an Allied Major Victory!). In addition, I was able to slide units back north and operate them to Dimapur and to the Hukawng Valley. As soon as the Arakan began to crumble for Tojo, I was also able to start leapfrogging my RAF units north towards Imphal. Second, my decision reinforcements. You have to decide on Imphal or Dimapur for where you want your British units to arrive. Imphal may be the tempting target, but Dimapur allows you to get units to Kohima faster. I was able to get the right units into the right areas at the right time. The AAR may not reflect it, but I was EXTREMELY concerned I was going to lose Kohima for sure. I felt good about Imphal being saved. With the Japs being ultra aggressive here, I was able to really concentrate on units one or two at a time and destroy them - rather than wounding them. Third, my air superiority. Since the Hukawng Valley is virtually worthless in terms of victory conditions, there wasn't a need to maintain my USAF units in the area. Yes, my advance was stalled (the Chinese are about worthless), but I just needed to prevent the Japs from pushing north towards the USA "capital". By sending my American fighter, bomber, and tac bomber west and my RAF Arakan tac bomber north, I was able to establish massive air superiority. This really allowed me to punish the advancing Japanese infantry units. When the monsoon rains hit, they were all useless - but the tide had already been turned. A great match (all my games with Bill come down to chess matches!), and I'm glad we did an AAR for this. I am curious if people enjoyed the AAR posting method (posting in blocks with plenty of screen shots). I don't think this style favors the full campaign scenario since subterfuge is needed there - but here, it wasn't a big deal. Thanks for the fun match Emporer Bill!

March '44? Unless you've got units ready to go near Australia and can hit both the east AND western sides, I'd say it's too late to go after them. Russia will ramp up soon and you'll have your hands full if you don't hit them before they join. I'd recommend getting units maxed up in technology and reinforcements, move them into place, and take a shot at the USSR. Unless you're concerned about the USA coming (and they will!).

Your British India infantry unit at 20,34 has maintained control of the port, so taking Chittagong will destroy the city but not the port. As soon as you destory that unit and move to the tile, you should see the port switch sides.

Vista likes to "make things easier"...so it sometimes hides things! Argh. I had the same problem, and Vista sends my PBEM games to a "Virtual Store" folder. If you're using Vista, look in "your profile"/AppData/Local/VirtualStore/Program Files/Battlefront/Strategic Command WW2 Pacific Theater/Multiplayer/Email. That's where I found Vista hiding mine. Once I found that, I right clicked dragged a shortcut to my desktop. When I download a turn, I can easily locate the folder and save turns there, email them, etc. Hope this helps JJR.

It's hard to give you suggestions without revealing any hints! Hopefully this won't be a game buster: Remember your historical hindsight! All I can say if you are going to go blind into it as the Japanese (as I did in the very first Beta version) is, Buckle Up and hold on for a crazy ride! Doing it this way can certainly add to the tension for sure. The AAR holds many hints, so you may or may not want to read that - your call. As a Vet from the old SC1 days, I would suggest you totally disregard your old strategies on naval warfare. Placement, modes, and proper spotting techniques are CRITICAL in this campaign. I would actually suggest a quick mini-campaign to get used to the naval aspects - such as Midway. It's pretty quick, intense, and gives you a baptism by fire on naval manuevers (take the USA first). For Operation Z, don't change any settings and give it a go on basic levels (with FOW on) and default settings. Good luck!

Willy - I believe the MacArthur script is 100% historical with his arrival in Adelade. Bill can fill you in on this one. But between the PT boats, bomber planes, trains, (and automobiles?), the date he arrives in Australia in the game matches the date in history. Is that what you are referring to?

I think you're starting to face the exact same problems that frustrated the Imperial Japanese Army!!

Speaking as the playtester in the match described by Bill, I'll add some more thoughts there. As the Allies, I was attempting a "defend Dutch East Indies at all costs" strategy. Those are valuable MPPs going to British India, and really helps the Japanese. So I immediately put my 2 USN carriers to sail and brought them around the south end of Australia...upgrading them in a brief layover in Australia ports. I snuck my reinforced British carrier to the south end of Java to link up with the USN. I had an armada of ships at my disposal. I dangled a unit within spotting range of a IJN flattop that I saw (Intel hit) sail into the straits between Borneo and Java. The IJN took the bait and brought their carrier, a BB, and at least one cruiser below Java to engage what looked like a pitiful fleet. After losing 2 cruisers in the initial battle, I pounced on Bill! I sank his carrier and the 2 heavy escorts below Java. It was nerve wracking because I had left eastern Australia, Solomons, etc...all exposed for an opportunity to really stall the initial (and vital) Japanese advances in their quest for resources! Imagine how my utter triumph and jubiliation turned to horror as the IJN counter-attacked, revealing FOUR carriers near Java! I lost both my USN carriers and my British unit's air component was depleted! I also lost (what was it Bill?) NINE surface ships (destroyers, cruisers, etc) in their overwhelming counter-attack! I was able to damage and sink a couple more units, but his carriers striking from the "safe" side of Java decimated my determined DEI defense strategy! It was one of the more costly naval battles I've ever had! The only bright side of the whole thing was it revealed that he had (at best) one carrier to the east (Truk). I was able to take advantage of that with a separate task force of newly built USN ships and completely crush any advances he was contemplating towards the Solomons. After that, I was able to change strategies and go with a more practical Island Hopping campaign. But that encounter at Java (DEI) was one of the most intense and brutal naval/carrier battle's I had in Head to Head playtesting matches!!!

Gotta love the "winks" by Hubert...

Rocko1, The manual describes it best. But for a Reader's Digest version: Fighter mode - Use this if you are worried about air strikes against your carrier or ships within CAP range. Naval/Tactical - Use this for best results when hitting other ships or ground units. Think of it as arming your planes with torpedoes or HE bombs. Mix - A mixture of both modes. Not as good vs. other planes, and not as good vs. ships/ground units...but better than fighter vs. ships and naval/tactical vs. fighters. A good compromise if you want to attack another ship, but are worried about their combat air patrol protection or the possibility of retaliative strikes against you the following turn. Modes generally apply to Fighter mode only. Set to fighter/CAP and then select Mode: Auto - Default mode. Fighters will escort other naval/tactical attacks if intercepted by other carriers or ground fighters. They'll also intercept incoming attacks if their strength is > 5. Intercept - Intercepts incoming attacks. Think of it as having fighters circling above in combat air patrols looking for inbound attacks. Will protect friendly units within range. I typically like to keep my carriers in Fighter/Intercept mode when moving around the map. It helps to know what mode they are in right away because of the "I" icon next to the carrier. Escort - Won't intercept, but will escort your naval/tactical or strategic attacks in case they are intercepted. Honestly, I rarely use this mode. Ground - Keep those planes on the ground so they won't escort or intercept. I only use this if I am completely confident that my carrier won't be attacked, is out of spotting range, and that I'm planning a massive counter attack. Hope this helps. But don't forget, as important as it is to have your carriers in the right mode, it's equally or more important to have your surface vessels in a protective placement in front. I prefer (when possible) to spread them out with a tile between them, subs in front, then destroyers, then cruisers, and battleships closest to the carrier. I do this because if you lose your subs or destroyers, they're cheapest to replace. Having a surprise encounter with a sub can inflict some nasty damage. And if your opponent keeps pushing forward, hopefully they will keep getting surprise encounters with increasing damage. Saving your cruisers and battleships for surface attacks (hint, a BB can inflict brutal damage to an unprotected carrier!) in a counter attack can really swing the battle to your side. Sometimes it's the counter attack that means the most! Technology is also key. Having a fully upgraded carrier is vital when encountering other carriers or surface ships. One more hint... carriers are your queens and kings all put together. Protect them and treat them like gold. But don't trade excessive surface fleets just to sink an opponents. Japan can't afford even up trades like America can due to the economic situation. So America can be slightly more aggressive. but if a trade looks like: 1 CV lost to 2 BB, 2 CA... it's not THAT great of a trade. But it also depends on the situation. If you know Japan only has one carrier in the area, you can be more aggressive. TONS of things to take into consideration, and the main campaign (Operation Z) does not have a "cookie cutter" strategy that wins every time. Hope this helps!

Speaking for my experience with the AAR... Yes, FOW was a b-tch. But that's what REALLY adds to the flavor of the Pacific Campaign! At times, the tension was really paltable and I was really stressing about where Japan had their flattops! You can read by the AAR that it's vital. The Brits never invested anything in Intelligence... they were too busy trying to hold the Japs at the Salween River in Burma! And I very nearly lost that front... which would have folded like a cheap suit! China doesn't have the money to invest in Intelligence. It was strictly Anti-Aircraft and Infantry Weapons for me. I had great luck in infantry tech hits, but little help in AA. The USA got up to level 3 Intelligence I believe. It was a big help at times. Unfortunately in the earlier intelligence reports, I was getting information about garrison units in Manchukuo, and that didn't help me at all. I did get quite a few Intelligence hits about IJN CV's off Indo-China and Borneo. But I wasn't in a position to take advantage of that. I did get a timely and helpful report about a carrier near north Japan twice near the end. The problem was... was it the same ship? Was it a second one? I used that intelligence information to dangle a lone AA Amphib transport near their spotting range, and quickly moved carriers and surface ships to the area in the hope that the Japanese would expose their carriers and entice a decisive naval battle. It worked, but it was much more costly than I anticipated!!! As Bill said, the AAR was a lot of fun and hopefully gave some players some ideas to use. It was an older beta version, so some exploits we discovered were fixed. But to answer your question, yes, Intelligence is one of the most beneficial (at times) research areas in this theater. Much more so than in the ETO! I believe the Japanese are limited in their research in this area, so the historical advantage for the Allies is there for the taking...you just have to keep investing in it!

Sorry to hear that Happycat! Don't worry, Battlefront is pretty consistent about getting back to people, regardless of the issue. I believe that you can contact them at elicense@battlefront.com, and they may answer you pretty quick (even after hours or on weekends from what I hear!). If not, you may have to wait until regular business hours, but don't be surprised if they work it out with you. Good luck, and enjoy the game!

Nice newspaper release Battlefront! Very clever! Go download it folks and get out there and fight those Japs off!

BUMP (Part III posted)

Yes, there is one for Turkey (and Sweden). The scripts are not that difficult to read when you look at the comments, examples, and explanation notes that Hubert writes at the beginning of every script. Franco was, at times, pretty "cozy" with the Germans during WW2. Having a 1 in 10 chance that Spain joins the Axis is not outside the realm of possibility. Besides, it gives a bigger challenge against the AI, right?!

It's an Axis AI script that triggers 10% of the time. You can read the script in the campaign folder, scripts, events, war_entry. Here's the script: ; Spain { #NAME= Spain Joins The Axis (10% - Axis AI) #POPUP= Spain Joins The Axis #IMAGE= #SOUND= #FLAG= 1 #TYPE= 0 #AI= 1 #COUNTRY_ID= 38 ;Set war entry #TRIGGER= 10 #ALIGNMENT= 1 #DATE= 1941/01/01 ;Germany politically aligned with Axis and not surrendered #VARIABLE_CONDITION= 5 [1] [100] [0] }

I don't think a zoom feature will be needed. But it's a suggestion and that's important here. Even an amphib landing has a chance of suffering loses, so even an undefended one island tile could inflict terrible losses. Increase the % chance or damage for island invasions. Create water supply "lanes" (function like railroads) to islands so that the supply to islands can be reduced. Increase bombardment damage from BB's. There are easier and reasonable solutions from a programming standpoint. If you want to zoom in to fight the Okinawa fight, someone who is comfortable with the Editor could reproduce this in a separate mod. This can be done now. Hubert is a one-man show. So suggestions, however "doable" they may or may not be are important to him. He's proven that in the past, and I think he's accomplishing his goal by making gamers world-wide hungry for more!

Instead of creating a new tech, why not have Infrastructure tech advances also give a 5-10% per level reduction in fortification time?

Wait till you get a chance to experiment with all the pieces before you get too frustrated (or excited) about them. Each new piece has it's pros and cons and place within strategy (it is a game after all). Old pieces revamped are also fun to try out now (rockets anyone?!). Special Forces can fall into a love/hate category, but I wouldn't dismiss them as easily as the rockets of SC/SC2. With cap limits on, they can be a valuable rook piece... hidden for much of a chess game behind pawns and knights on the front lines, but deadly when they arrive in the right situations! (I shudder to imagine what devilish deeds Terif will unleash with some of these units - a player who can turn the tide of a game so quickly that the WaW Alpha/Beta group nick-named one game event "The Terif Effect" during testing!) Some testers had some really great suggestions for this unit, and I know they're holding back to let everyone experience everything on their own. I'll be interested to read posts/AARs of people's experiences (both good/bad/embarassing) as soon as they get WaW. I'll be watching this topic too, to see what people's first, second, etc impressions of the Special Forces units are. I rarely post on the boards, and usually do so only when prompted by something that tugs at me. And reading about you guys drooling for WaW reminds me of watching my son about to open presents at Christmas! (Hubert, you'll find out what I mean by next year...) Just wait till you get a chance to play with all the new toys of WaW in a live/demo-free environment. You diehards (grogs included) will love it. I think you old timers will acknowledge that yet again, Hubert has intently listened to this gaming community and answered! And if you logically present issues that you have with ANY part of the game, you can be assured that you have a designer that is willing to take your idea and run with it. That's priceless when compared to the game designers these days that create games designed to appeal to shipping/PO quotas - rather than one with the gaming community in mind. While some (like Matrix) do a pretty good job of it, you know you've got that with Battlefront and Hubert for sure. //Resuming General Forum Lurker Mode

It IS strong offensively, but defensive values are weakened. Leave it on the front line like an army and it'll quickly be back in your purchase pool.

The air power is something that's been discussed, and I know Pzgndr is open to ideas, suggestions, and feedback. RE: France - I think what is needed is a little Axis AI scripting that sets tile objectives near Paris as priorities once Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands have been conquered. I too have noticed that it is possible to defend longer against the AI. I don't think it's possible in H2H. In one match against the Axis AI, I held on to France until after Russia joined. I was foolish to think Russia was ready to go on the offensive and within months found myself scrambling to defend Moscow! I believe I finally conquered Germany and Italy by June '45. Play it out AZGungHo - I'd be interested in reading a shortened synopsis of your match too!

Bill - You've done a great job on this! For those of you that have tried this user mod, download the update. As you can see, Bill has done quite a bit of work on this scenario, and it shows. For those of you who haven't tried this, I highly recommend it! Make sure you set the AI to Intermediate - experienced players bump it up to +1 experience. This is a faithful recreation of the Third Reich box game some of you may recall playing in the late 70's, early 80's (I know, dating myself...). Bill has done a marvelous job of completely redrawing the map to reflect the Adv. Third Reich box map. There are quite a few differences between the SC2 campaign map - so be prepared for adjusting your strategies! You'll also note that the MPP amounts have been adjusted, both in the cost of purchasing most land units and in operating expenses. I think Bill did a great job in tinkering with this within the SC2 engine to reflect the force pools of A3R and the free strategic movement (operating) allowances in A3R. Did I mention Force Pools? Yes, Bill has painstakingly renamed every unit available to match the A3R punch out counters! This is NOT a historical mod. This is a great attempt to recreate the fun situations and gameplay found in Advanced Third Reich within Hubert's awesome game. Some of the criticisms of the original game probably can be found in this game as well, but I really believe Bill has tried to minimize though. No two games will be the same! Bill has added dozens of scripts and variant situations that can completely change a game against the AI. I won't spoil some of the surprises here! Oh, and don't think for a moment that the Axis AI won't attempt a SeaLion!!! The AI is challenging, no matter which side you play. As Allies, you need to strategize for the long term. For USA, this means actually considering whether or not to construct a navy! If you decide to ignore this aspect, you'll have a heck of a time with the AI Kriegsmarine! Another feature I really found well thought out and planned was the use of HQ's. You cannot build HQs in this mod (except for repurchase of killed units). The HQs for every country are in the production que. This helps control the "flow" of the game and adds a unique aspect that you won't find in standard SC2 games. Skeptical? Try it first! And finally, the game breaking technology scores have been dilluted a bit. Again, I whole heartedly encourage those of you who have played A3R to give this one a go. For those of you that haven't, this mod will still give you a unique challenge and provide hours of enjoyment!

Not a problem, more than happy to help! I figured as much on most topics, but wanted to mention them to you. RE: - (Bug?) Once Egypt falls, there is a message that comes up after MOST turns: "Naval Units Proceed to South Atlantic" There is an AI event to evacuate Allied naval units so that's probably what you're seeing. Multiple units would take a couple of turns, generating a message each time. --- FOG was off, and there were no Allied units that were moving. That's why the message was so odd. When you play the Axis, take Africa (Italians can easily do it by themselves) and see if you can reproduce the Axis Siberian Transfers. And for those that are reading this thread and have never played Bill's mod, give 'er a go. It's a great attempt to reproduce A3R in a SC2 environment, and is a refreshing change of pace (at least until Hubert reveals his new playtoy...)

Bill - Updated Event and AI scripts. Still have some quirks: - (Bug?) This has happened twice to me, but I'm still trying to narrow down the cause. When a USSR capital falls, new units appear mysteriously for the Germans. For example, captured Stalingrad (already have Moscow). No announcements made between turns, but two armies, a corps, and a rocket all appear around Moscow - full strength, full tech, with one bar experience. Almost like an automatic Siberian Transfer FOR the Axis. - (AI) Purchasing behavior. The AI seems to horde it's cash and is extremely thrifty with its purchases. For example, the Axis are knocking on Moscow's doors, and the Allied AI still has 2000 BRP's (sorry, MPP's) just sitting there unused. I've seen France go until after the Low Countries are invaded before they buy anything (saving 1500 or so first). - (AI Planning) AI amphibious transports in the planning stage announce their intended target when moving (lower left screen, arrow to destination). - (AI Planning) For some reason, the UK AI will move the Desert Air Fleet to the island at 122,57 near Famagusta port. Makes no sense and is ineffective placement. - (AI Planning) Allied AI doesn't seem to want to man El Alamein. - (Unit) Italian HQ ratings seem a bit high. 8 and 10? So the Italian HQ's are both better than Rommel?? I think 6's would be more realistic for gameplay issues. - (Diplomacy) Italian diplomacy percentage too high? Might be more realistic to drop it to 3 or 4% - (Bug?) Once Egypt falls, there is a message that comes up after MOST turns: "Naval Units Proceed to South Atlantic" - (AI Planning) Since the AI hordes money, it cannot effectively defend against a SeaLion. - (Unit) Bomber and Fighter air defense against ground units too high. Ground unit catching an air unit on the ground should be lethal to them. Air power issues already exist in gameplay, and this doesn't help. - (Unit) RE: Minors that normally receive a 1-4 or 2-4 air unit. Can you cap that unit's strength at 5? I noticed you lowered their effectiveness. Just some notes, not being "critical". Still really enjoy the mod!!!