Jollyguy

Been absent from the games awhile…enjoying my summer game break! But I do linger, and have to echo Terif’s comments about material changes to the Fall Weiss map from that earlier screenshot of France. At the moment the game is basically balanced, so significant modifications will result in significant game play effects. My primary input though is not that changes shouldn’t be made, as changes keep the game fresh, just that balance needs to be kept in mind while doing so. If there’s a crease of gaminess available people will jump all over it. Those of us from the SC 1 days remember the carrier bug among others, which once discovered was utilized as widely as a politician promising tax cuts in an election year. I.e., if Sea Lion is more of a risk as stated, and an Axis method is developed to capitalize on this, it will spread like wildfire and we’ll have some frustrated Allied players and multiple games ending in 1940 or 1941. And on the flip side, making France easier to invade will draw Axis forces from the Russian front, with attendant long term results. So, just make sure to play test this well and imaginatively. I guess it’s like the Dutch boy and dike. Each time he tried to plug a hole a new one appeared. After six patches SC 2 pretty much had all the holes plugged, but a major re-shuffling of the deck means more holes will be bound to appear unless a lot of thought is put into game balance. Bob

Most interesting game I've played so far. I lost track of how many Axis ground units goot destroyed at 50+ many turns ago, so it was the most bloody game I've ever had. At the end I took back Brest, and the next turn Terif used an Italian corps to spot with and revealed level 4 subs. When The Master resorts to corps as spotters, even Italian ones, you know he's flush with mpps. And his level 4 subs were 11 and 12 elite reinforced. FDR and Churchill sent feelers and the Axis was receptive to ending the war, and then they turned over Stalin, who got caught after he smuggled himself from Siberia to the West Coast, hoping to find asylum in that left leaning colony called Hollywood. Hellraiser was right, Africa was an Axis stragegic sideshow. But Liam is also right in the gains the Allies made, as reading an AAR does not convey the value that down in the trenches experience does. It was interesting to see just how many mpps the the Western Allies can accumulater later in the game, and how if I had a navy I could have picked any number of landing zones. In hindsight losing my navy was a strategic blunder. It meant for probably a year that I wasn't able to grapple with Terif out West, as I had to hole up on the English Isles while the Kreigsmarine and Italian Navy effectively blockaded me. It is very important for the Western Allies to harass the Axis continually with effective sideshows, draining as many mpps for as long as possible and keeping them off balance, until they can spot a strategic chink in the armor and try to pry it open. Emboldened by this game, I've decided to start another one. We'll see if it becomes AAR worthy, but I do feel I know a bit better the mechanics of the game. Another observation: I think a mistake many Allied players make is to attack out of impatience. In reality, delaying the Axis can also yield dividends, as it increases the chance that Allies can apply their economic advantage, and apply it effectively and in their favor, rather than battles in which the enemy comes out ahead. So patience, and a lot of it, combined with discretion, and a lot of that too, is needed to have a chance to tip the strategic initiative in your favor. Bob

I don't know how to do screenshots, but Terif does. This game has been a great learning experience. Terif always said the Urals was a great place to stage an Allied counter-offensive, but I never really believed him. Now I do. It's an incredibly hard nut for the Axis to crack. Anyway, this is like two boxers trading blows. A second Axis sub heads to the bottom in view of the denizens of Manchester, but not until after the Manchester port is reduced to 0 by Axis bombers, cutting off shipments of Spam and silk stockings from the States for the GI's to distribute to the English ladies. In retaliation two Axis bombers, one German, one Italian, supported by a figher flying escort, hit and damage one RN carrier. Next turn the RAF strikes back, and hits the German bomber with successive strikes with the damaged German fighter only able to provide ineffecitve resistance. The bomber is taken out on the ground. In Africa the Allies take El Aghelia, but all along the coast find their supply sources subjected to continual shore bombardment by Axis capital ships. Across the Med the Allies had earlier spotted Athens occupied by a corp, and ponder if that would be a place to attack, as the Rumanian oilfields would be opened to strategic bombing. In Russia the Axis takes one of the Ural cities, losing several armies and an Italian paratroop in retaliation over two turns. Uncle Joe is holding on by his fingernails, and in all liklihood Russia will fall. But, like Deja-vu, this will all be remembered for the next contest, which in SC 2 can happen over and over. Bob

Good summary by Terif. Yes, the Allied African expeditionary force surprised a second German commander, who didn’t have much time to get too comfortable in the balmy 120 degree weather. Before all of his desert, khaki commander outfits arrived from his favorite Italian tailor, he met the same fate as the first commander, when, as Terif said in an earlier post, “a US blind shell fell through the roof on his head.” Three US long range fighters (level 3), joined by two RAF comrades, and a US and British bomber flew over in wave after wave until the second commander met his untimely end. As can be expected, the third commander seemed a bit more cautious, and after landing eventually moved west, away from the front, instead of east, toward it. The Allied bombers hit Tobruk and its port to slow down reinforcements and reduce supply. Meanwhile, out west, two British corps land in Northern Germany and take the evening shoppers in two cities by surprise, as all the German soldiers had been dispatched far-and-wide across conquered territories, leaving no one to garrison the Home cities. The US bomber, LR 3, before being dispatched to Africa, had spotted the empty cities, and the commandos who landed were happy to find them still undefended when they waded ashore. Unfortunately taking the port was not possible, as it’s guarded by a corp sitting atop a three three-sided fortification. One city is taken back by the Germans a couple turns later, the other hangs around for a bit longer, before he too will have to take up accommodations in POW camps…or cemeteries. Meanwhile, in Russia, Uncle Joe has been forced all the way back to his Urals dacha, a place he never liked that much as the local vodka isn’t as good as it was in Moscow and then Stalingrad. He’s also upset that his domain has shrunk so much, which leaves him fewer opportunities to conduct pogroms and mass deportations. And he can’t purge anymore officers, because they’re all needed at the front! My convoys are getting raided like crazy, the sad result of allowing Terif to establish naval supremacy. A valuable lesson for the next war. Meanwhile I’ve fired my Admirals for such ill-conceived strategies and hired new ones (they’re lucky I didn’t make them walk the plank), and we’ll see if their replacements can change anything. I still think Terif will win this one, but hey, it’s good experience. I’ll take him into mid-1944 at least, which for all that have played Terif know is quite an accomplishment in itself. An actual victory might have to wait before my gaming hiatus, but it’s been fun nevertheless! Bob

As Terif said, you need to continually adapt. With that in mind I retreated the remaining Russian Caucusses survivors to the Middle East, where they will join with the veterans of the battle of Alexandria to carry on the war, as it occured to me that I can harass the Caucusses and possibly even reclaim them. At the very least I'll tie Axis troops down, as with Russian paratroopers I can drop in when my LR air Allied fighters and/or bombers spot an opening. Yes, we will go into 1944 both licking our wounds and rebuilding. In Egypt the Allies solidify their positions and dual with the Luftwaffe. The one transport I lost I should have landed in Syria, but again adapdation is the key. I'm not sure how many Axis land units have been lost, I'll check next turn, but it could be in excess of 40. Bob

Taojah; I can't think of too many times a game is over by 1940 unless you did something really reckless. If you just stick with it sometimes your opponent does something reckless, too, or maybe a series of smaller mstakes that you can capitalize on. One time France fell by December when I was the Allies, and I eventually won that game! The worm turns many times. Add to the real WW II luck (strategic) factors: 1) Luftwaffe shifting to English cities in retaliaton for British bombing attacks, allowing the RAF time to catch their breath. 2) The Japaneese Admiral switching from bombs to torpedoes and back to bombs at Midway, allowing our dive bombers to sink his carriers in the middle of the last switch. 3) Our carriers being out of port at Pearl Harbor. 4) The Nazis chasing all their best scientist out of the country, and right to our Manhatten project. 5) The Germans falling for an obvious feint at Pas de Calais, instead of Normandy. 6) The Brit paratroopers landing at Arnhem into the teeth of panzers, and Montgomery ignoring their prescence. 7) Hitler starving his jet program until it was too late, in favor of conventional prop fighters. 8) Hitler refusing to fall back in an orderly fashion, shortening the war. 9) A German transport plane going down in Belgium in 1940 with their attack plans on board, resulting in a change to pure blitzkrieg tactics. 10) The Yugoslav coup and Mussolini's foray into Greece, forcing the Germans to delay Barbarossa for six valuable weeks. 11) A German officer bumping his leg on a brief case, and placing Colonol Staffenburgs bomb on the other side of a thick oak table leg, allowing Hitler to survive the assasination attempt. 12) The Germans never attacking all at once at Bastogne and overrunning us when they could, instead doing scattered, uncordinated attacks which allowed us to shift forces each time. I'm sure the list can go on and on. In SC2 luck balances out. I.e., in my current game with Terif my Russian tank chit has yet to hit...4 years later! But my Russian tanks have performed well regardless, taking out their share of units. I just had to adapt and use more discretion in their usage. Bob

Taojah; I can't think of too many times a game is over by 1940 unless you did something really reckless. If you just stick with it sometimes your opponent does something reckless, too, or maybe a series of smaller mstakes that you can capitalize on. One time France fell by December when I was the Allies, and I eventually won that game! The worm turns many times. Add to the real WW II luck (strategic) factors: 1) Luftwaffe shifting to English cities in retaliaton for British bombing attacks, allowing the RAF time to catch their breath. 2) The Japaneese Admiral switching from bombs to torpedoes and back to bombs at Midway, allowing our dive bombers to sink his carriers in the middle of the last switch. 3) Our carriers being out of port at Pearl Harbor. 4) The Nazis chasing all their best scientist out of the country, and right to our Manhatten project. 5) The Germans falling for an obvious feint at Pas de Calais, instead of Normandy. 6) The Brit paratroopers landing at Arnhem into the teeth of panzers, and Montgomery ignoring their prescence. 7) Hitler starving his jet program until it was too late, in favor of conventional prop fighters. 8) Hitler refusing to fall back in an orderly fashion, shortening the war. 9) A German transport plane going down in Belgium in 1940 with their attack plans on board, resulting in a change to pure blitzkrieg tactics. 10) The Yugoslav coup and Mussolini's foray into Greece, forcing the Germans to delay Barbarossa for six valuable weeks. 11) A German officer bumping his leg on a brief case, and placing Colonol Staffenburgs bomb on the other side of a thick oak table leg, allowing Hitler to survive the assasination attempt. 12) The Germans never attacking all at once at Bastogne and overrunning us when they could, instead doing scattered, uncordinated attacks which allowed us to shift forces each time. I'm sure the list can go on and on. In SC2 luck balances out. I.e., in my current game with Terif my Russian tank chit has yet to hit...4 years later! But my Russian tanks have performed well regardless, taking out their share of units. I just had to adapt and use more discretion in their usage. Bob

Liam, IMO Terif will win this one, too. He probably plays more SC2 in a week than I play in months. And this is the only game I have going before I take a game hiatus. You make a good point, though, in that I did better leading up to 1942. Like Terif says, SC 2 goes in phases, back-and-forth the pendulum can swing. Terif has magnitudes more experience from 1942 than I have. But not to discourage the others. It took me maybe a dozen games to get my pre and early Barbarossa game down. A handful other games and I think I could give Terif a better run for his money from mid 1942 on. I ask other good players on this board to post their AAR's, as I will linger and read them with interest. I may be back in the Winter, when the rain makes us Seattlites housebound, and SC2 games sound like a good way to pass the time. I also want to thank Terif again for taking the time to play me, its been a great learning experience. You (Liam), Rambo, Terif, and some of the other veterans are great adversaries, the games are always interesting. Bob

Ah, but the Allies pull a surprise themselves. While the Axis garrison in Egypt sleeps peacefully, with the Germans frustrated for lack of good beer, and the Itailans frustrated that they can't pinch the local, burqa-clad Arab women for fear that their hands will get whacked off by jealous Arab men, awake to hear the claxon sounds of a huge Allied convoy at their shores. Ship-after-ship-after-ship appears in the Red Sea, so many that some pop up in the Med. And then, with Axis eyes glued to the site of the armada at sea, they hear the rumble of transport planes and look up to see Russian paratroopers descending from the sky, joined by Russian marines rushing ashore. The German HQ is then subjected to three air attacks by British and American airfleets, then killed by the Russians, who secure Alexandria, leaving two German corps without a leader. One ship moves into the Suez canal to secure access to the Med for the next wave of troops. The Western Allies have arrived from France, where Eisenhower and Montgomery earlier had agreed that the wall of European fortifications facing them would be like banging their heads against the proverbial wall. So, 3/4's of a year earlier, during the depths of the Winter of 1942 and Spring of 1943, they had embarked before the Wehrmacht could fully detect their movement, a single US corp that they could see left in place so as not to give away the rest his comrades embarking from Brest two-by-two for Egypt. Meanwhile, in Russia, Uncle Joe is given the task of buying time while the Western Allies expand their African front. As to the naval war, Terif summarizes well, the Allies got the worst of it, but in doing so it allowed the Allied convoy to reach the arrows unhindered over successive turns and proceed around the Cape. I also decided not to challenge the Axis navy too close to the shores, just in case Terif laid one of his famous traps, which he did. I suspect he expected me to land in Casablanca instead, where his three Luftwaffe fighters that sank my sub would have shredded any landing force. Instead Uncle Joe has been given a respite from those fighters, and the Allies have the core of a navy remaining to build on. It's July, 1943, and I will be able to take Terif into 1944 with robust forces all around, which is an accomplishment for me. I'm taking notes, noting mistakes made by my Allies, and believe with a few modifications they will put on an even better showing next game, exhibiting that if someone is determined enough and patient enought that I believe Terif can be beaten. In a later post I will detail further thoughts that would bought me more time, and provided the Allies more time to apply their mpp advantage. Bob

Terif summarizes it well. As to his battleships, I'm asssuming when they made it to the Baltic from the Med they must have come the long way in the Atlantic, so, I decided to keep my sub in the vicinity of Brest/England, and then to scout backwards several turns after he sunk my Russian Baltic fleet, in case he tried to make a run for it. He generally likes to concentrate forces so it seemed he might try this, and it's also a tactic from other AAR's. I know Rambo does it a lot. In Russia, yes, a huge battle. I gambled in January, 1943, and moved several new units forward, after I took out two of his units, hoping to get snow, which you probably get a high percentage of the time. Then I would upgrade my next turn. But alas, the weather Gods favored Terif, as mud hit instead...and then the Wehrmacht hit me. On balance I would say the Russian battle has been close to 1 to 1 in losses, with a bias to Terif. Its been a Russian meat grinder, no doubt. He should take Stalingrad soon though, probably this turn (May, 1943), and although this is by the far the best Allied game I've played against him, my guess is that he'll wear me down. All-in-all the best game I've played, as each successive game against him has gotten more and more interesting. I may not achieve my goal of beating him, and have to leave that to another capable player. Bob

Update: Massive battle around Baghdad, where I set an ambush by only placing an army in the city, but kept about 15 Russian units hidden in the hills north and east and around Tehran, along with my British bomber, fighter, army, tank and HQ. Since my Turkish gambit game, where I discovered that Allied minors provided full supply, I was able to retreat my Egyptian units and utilize them in this battle. Terif softened up the city with two fighters, which I responded by operating in three corps. He then attacked, and my Russians and Brits poured out from the hills, while my British bomber around Tehran and unsupported American Bomber in Kuwait bombed Amman and Syria to prevent Axis reinforcements from operating in, and to reduce supply. Two Russian paratroopers taste battle for the first time, dropping in the midst of the German concentration to take out their HQ, while the British fighter and elite reinforced Siberian fighter draw fire from the two Luftwaffe units, leaving the other Russian fighter and unsupported American fighter to provide ground support. The battle raged for about four months, with the tally of killed units for the Axis being 1 HQ, 1 fighter, 2 armies and 5 corps (many at 4 or less supply), at the cost of 1 Russian army, 2 corps, and 1 British army. The Russians and Brits advanced and retook Amman and Syria, and have just bombed Cairo for the first time with a British bomber. Meanwhile, emboldened by their Middle East victory, the Russians, incorrectly assumed the Axis to be low on land units and tried to take out a probing level 1 German tank in the city north of Moscow, which Uncle Joe abandoned without a fight. But this time it was the Axis that sprung a trap, taking out 3 Russian armies and a corp in a joint attack there and around Kharkov, which Uncle Joe incorrectly thought he could defend for longer than one turn. The Russians, realizing they couldn't defend everywhere, retreated, taking out one German corp on the way backwards. The Russians also retake a mine with a motorized corp from Svestapol, while the Germans and Finns finally take Leningrad. Meanwhile, out West, the Allies take Brest when the Axis extract their German corp and replace it with one of Il Duce's corps, who doesn't offer much resistance after a combined attack. The Axis continue to raid the Iraqi convoys without an Allied response, but with Brest taken and the Allied scientists busy, that might change soon. It's September, 1942, and that's where we sit. Bob

And that's the gist of what I'm saying, if you want to tweak the game for whatever reason, then keep balance in mind. The game may not be perfect historically, but it is balanced. Every veteran player here remembers the bidding system of SC 1. Well, that's history. I'm sure Hubert put a whole lot of time into balancing this thing, and hey, he got it right. So, if you want a perfect historical recreation, customize a mod. But as far as the standard, 1939 Fall Weiss scenario, don't be trying to fix something that isn't broke. If you want to reshuffle the deck, fine, I have no problem with that. Just make sure each side gets the same balance that they have now. It should basically be a zero sum game. Bob

Now that I'm close to matriculation from the Terif School of SC 2, I believe I can say that I see how the calculus of SC 2 works. This is something Terif figured out a long time ago but which few others have. And Terif has mentioned countless times in prior posts that he believes SC 2 to be close to perfectly balanced, which I now wholeheartedly agree with. IMO the secret to making the Allies work is like so many other things in life, it’s a steep learning curve while you’re doing it, but seemingly common sense in hindsight. The only way to have a fighting chance is to throw the Axis time table off, and then to be opportunistic and keep the Axis off balance by destroying units and/or causing him to incur operating/transporting costs by spreading him out over the map. The calculus is very simple. The Axis start with more units and then out produce the Russians by two and maybe even three-to-one leading into Barbarossa, when you include the Italians. And Russia is always where the main German effort must occur. This means if the Germans are allowed to conquer minors and build-up unhindered, they will almost certainly prevail in Russia by 1943. IMO that’s why my fancy strategies like take Finland with the help of the British and have the Brits DOW Sweden failed, because while I was conserving my mpps to research and buy units for my flashy attack, the Germans were allowed to marshal a massive Barbarossa force. What the Allied player needs to do early in the war is utilize his advantage of being able to harass the Axis in areas of his choosing. The Brits have to be quick and opportunistic, more like a boxer dancing around a much larger opponent, not expecting to knock his adversary out, but to land blows that will wind him and eventually sap his energy. Here’s the math. Let’s say the Axis player gets diplomacy hits on his minors and signals he’s going to attack Spain. Every turn the Germans are delayed in taking Spain means st 5 mpps per resource hex he gets 35 mpps less, but even more when they go to 8. And, after the DOW, if the Brits get lucky and can delay the Axis advance, which can happen if Spain is invaded late and bad weather sets in, then that’s a 70 mpps shift, 35 less for the Axis, 35 more for the Allies. That’s why Terif when he plays the Allies holds Brest even at the cost of a corp. And that’s why Terif transports in a British corp to the Northern Spanish city. And that’s why Terif will DOW Algeria if the Axis is late in doing so. And that’s why Terif will place the RN around Brest and Gibralter. It’s like a set of dominoes that adds up to likely over a thousand mpps that the Allies either get and/or the Axis doesn’t. If the Allies can also take out an Axis army or corp or two or three, your talking a significantly smaller force for the Russians to deal with, and more opportunities for the Western Allies to cause trouble sooner. In summary, and I believe Terif has said this too, any one British action might prove minor, involving a small number of mpps going either way. But in total, when this occurs turn after turn, it adds up. So for those who pick one game element in isolation and say it needs fixing, I suggest you first play Terif’s Allies and see how he plays it. He never misses an opportunity as the Allies to be a thorn in the Axis side, generally by causing trouble in the Med. And he’ll gladly incur British losses (but not recklessly), because he knows doing so keeps the Axis off balance, and pays major dividends down the road once Russia and the US are in the fight. In closing, I would say little needs fixing in SC 2. Enhancements, yes, but fixing, not much. And if something is “fixed” or enhanced then the other side needs something in return, because as it is most actions by the Axis come with a cost that benefits the Allies and which they can capitalize on, and vice-versa. Bob

Now on this I agree with Blashy. BB's simply get ravaged in port by subs, when in reality only in a few spectabuar instances did this happen. So improve that for the Allies and give the Axis something in return. Bob

I’m siding with the Master here, as he’s right as usual. He sees the game holistically, as one large whole. So he’s right, reduce sub cost too low and you unbalance the game. Alterations to the game engine can’t be done in a vacuum, all aspects must be considered. I’m a proponent of gradual, well thought modifications. And Terif’s strategy of hitting a resource hex with two or three bombers in tandem is the way to go, but something that never occurred to me. The first bomber takes AA damage, the other two drop their loads undisturbed. Next turn repair one, use the other two, so-on and so-on, effectively negating an AA upgrade at moderate cost, and/or forcing the Axis to pull valuable air units from the Eastern Front. The things you pick up reading Terif’s posts! Too bad I’ll be taking a break, I’d like to try out this strategy. But it's just another example of how SC 2 continues to surprise with its depth of variable strategies. Bob

Ah, I disagree. The Allies have sent their share of Axis ships to the bottom also, and the Allies still have all four (damaged) carriers remaining. My guess is the Allies have lost more ships, but then they have more ships to lose, and the Yanks just got another cruiser. The Allied command will determine how much if any ship repairing to do. Bob

Oh, Terif is the Master because he knows how to improvise, I wouldn’t say I’m in control. Forgot to add that he DOW’ed Sweden pre-Barbarossa, probably to evict me from the Nordic region following my interest in that area over many games. I didn’t try to hold Norway, just delayed him from Narvik as long as possible. Doing so threw consumed resources and time at his end from troops that could have been used elsewhere. Should also add that the Brits have suffered their share of land losses. I think I’ve rebuilt four destroyed corps, coming from Brest; Gibralter; one from the Spanish city north of Casablanca that got trapped; and the one sacrificed to take that Italian, African city to buy time. If Terif’s reading maybe he has the total loss count, but it’s been plenty already on both sides all around, in land, naval, and air units. And I know we’ve both incurred significant mpp costs in amphibs and transporting and operating also. Bob

Okay, this is likely my final SC 2 game for awhile, as I want to enjoy Seattle’s Spring and Summer following an historically punishing Winter. I decided rather than a flashy, creative strategy, to just get in the trenches with Terif (Axis), and have my Brits do their best to hinder and harass him. Using what I’ve learned from the Master himself, I held France until May, then held Brest as long as possible in order to throw the Axis time table off for Spain, which Terif signaled was his target by diplo of his minors. Then I put a british corp in the Northern Spanish city, again, to delay, and also got IW 2, and upgraded my Gibralter corp. I bought Monty for the Home Islands and occupied Casablanca with a corp, which is when things got interesting. Instead of shipping my Middle East HQ and army and tank back home, I hid them out of sight around Casablanca. He advanced headlong from Algeria expecting I believe only to find a light garrison, and he bumped into my reinforced garrison, including my Desert Spitfire. I took out a corp and army, so he pulled back, also forcing him to operate in air support. Meanwhile, Gibralter fell, but not before the RN exacted damage, including taking out another army at the cost of a sacrificed BB I had to leave in the Med to finish the job, following a fairly large naval battle that had ensued around Gibralter. But again, instead of retreating the RN entirely I made it look so, but lingered, and when the combined Axis navy probed into the Atlantic I came back and sank two Italian cruisers. With the Luftwaffe to back him up he eventually took Casablanca, but instead of transporting the survivors home I went around the loop and back to Egypt which had been quite due to the protracted battle in Casablanca, and I entrenched there, including putting my army on the fortification. All the while I was building-out my corp allotment for the Home Islands. At the same time he had removed his picket boat from Malta, so I operated in my bomber before the Gibralter effect hit and amphibed my corp, and took that African city southeast and sealed him off from operating to Tobruk. He eventually showed up in Egypt, but only after having to march east by foot a good distance. Once the battle started it didn’t last too long as the Brits pulled back. I also sacrificed a BB at the Suez canal, which held the Axis up another two turns by blocking him from crossing too the Sinai until he sunk it with fighters (another trick I learned from Terif). With the added time Uncle Joe took Iran and Iraq, while Finland joined the Axis unimpeded. But meanwhile, out West, the Kriesmarine joined up with the Duce’s navy and caused trouble around the Home Islands, eventually blockading all convoy routes. This wasn’t broken until the Yanks joined, at which time another large naval battle ensued, which began with me sinking an amphib German army next to Brest, which I can only surmise was destined for either Ireland or to probe for a late Sea Lion. In that sea battle the losses were heavy for both sides, and I eventually broke it off, but the convoy routes are open for now. In the meantime he landed a corp in Southern England and took out a depleted RAF fighter and his ships destroyed my surviving French fighter, both which I had used to spot his navy with down south. Meanwhile, in Russia, I believe the Germans tried to bluff toward Odessa to keep Uncle Joe behind the Dneiper, but instead the Russians left the riverline to take out three Wehrmact corps at the cost of an army, as Uncle Joe surmised that with the Axis taking neutrals and otherwise busy elsewhere and with the losses that they had sustained and mpps denied by holding onto Egypt, etc., that it was an opportunity to leave their trenches. It’s April, 1942, and where we are at is the Siberians have arrived; Uncle Joe still holds the Dnieper line and Iraq and Iran; The Brits are licking their wounds but have a solid garrison on the Home Islands and a still viable navy; and what the Yanks are up to is a State secret. Bob

Update: An Axis (Terif) win. The nail in my coffin was after taking Brest I invaded Portugal, and thought I had Spain sealed off with a combination of paratroopers and amphibs near the Pyrannes mountains bordering France, but he was able to open a crack in my barricade and operate a massive force into Madrid, trapping my five blockaders which he then picked off one by one. I still had a still sizeable force around Lisbon, but Terif was patient and we fought for about half a year, trading units, until he wore me down. So, in hindsight, I would have been better off invading elsewhere, as I didn’t realize the Axis by proper placement of units could so easily skirt five blocking units and slip through a seam between two hexes, but live and learn. I’ve also realized that having the Brits try to upset the Axis timetable pays better dividends than conjuring up a creative and flashy strategy that allows the Axis to buildup unhindered until Barbarossa. Keeping the Axis spread-out as long as possible and trying to attrit their mpps during 1940 and 1941 gives Uncle Joe a better chance. That’s what I’ve done in my remaining game with Terif, which might be my last for awhile, as I’m contemplating an SC 2 break so I can garden and bike and do other real life stuff. When Spring and Summer hit in the Pacific Northwest you want to enjoy it! Bob

Update: Terif DOW's Turkey on same turn as Barbarossa! He positioned six, count-em, six Luftwaffe that hit the poor Turks in wave after wave of attack. Then a paratrooper dropped in from the European side to finish off the dazed defenders, and a paratrooper from from Syria occupied the capital. The Turks and their long knives gone in one turn! Elsewhere, the Finns are attacked by Stalin, and the Irish join the Brits. It's late 1941, and the Siberians just arrived; the Yanks are quiet; and the Brits have an engineer building Norwegian and Swedish fortifications, and Brest fell a turn before Barbarossa, and that's about it of note, as have to run. Bob

I agree with Terif on game balance. The game is very, very close to balanced, so anytime something is changed there has to be an offset to the other side...except for the partisans, that needs to be fixed! Bob

Agree with Liam as to randomness and predictability. I.e., why not have the Poles hold out longer on occasion, as now they almost always fall in 3 or 4 turns. Or maybe have them setup a bit differently sometimes, or entrench in Warsaw every once in awhile. The German sub could also be placed randomly sometimes. That's just a start. Although I have to say, all-in-all SC2 still holds my interest, but that's not to say that a few of these suggestions wouldn't help. Bob

I know Vichy and Syria always bring a reaction, which is what I meant to say. Certain events should always carry a reaction, such as these two and more, but others could be addedor made more variable, as Blashy is saying. Bob

The only part of the scripts I don’t like relates to the partisans. The Axis player should not be able to avoid certain hexes and as a result never, ever have to deal with partisans. But other than that I agree with Terif in part, as I believe many of the non-DOW reactive scripts are percentage based. I.e., in this game, since I have Sweden, I’ve already moved my two Baltic, Russian cruisers away from port and the Finns have not reacted. Sometimes they do, sometimes not. But IMO the US should always react to an Axis DOW of Vichy and Syria as a game balancing mechanism. But I also agree with Blashy in part, as think it would add spice to the game if there was a wider range of reactions. Chess is pure strategy with no variation, while Poker is also a game of strategy but with wide variation. I think SC 2 works best somewhere in between. Bob

Have played three games against Terif lately, one with me as Axis in which he pasted me but which I learned a lot; the second where he was Axis and utilized a very creative strategy which I’ll keep secret, as he deserves to use it again IMO. Of course if he wants to mention it he can, but a little mystery and suspense is good at times! In this AAR I’m Allied, and my strategy involved knowledge of the scripts and striking where the enemy isn’t, something Terif always utilizes to his advantage. What I did was wait to see if Terif tipped his Axis hand by using diplomacy on his minors. Once he did that I left my army in Norway, and moved all my Egyptian units up there too, direct from the Middle East, saving the mpps of having to transport them again from the Home Islands. I didn’t do any diplomacy and didn’t even take Casablanca, and directed all my mpps to building corps and eventually Montgomery to secure England, along with select research which will remain a State secret. Then, after he DOW’ed Spain and committed virtually all his spare land units that direction, I DOW’ed Sweden, disabling Stockholm port with my bomber. This drove US readiness down to about 46% from 60% I believe, so my US convoys were still intact. Sweden fell in two turns, I think one turn before Spain surrendered. I used this strategy as he always DOW’s Sweden around the time of Barbarossa and eventually pushes me out of Scandanavia all together. The only thing I did wrong was not building a paratrooper soon enough so it could take the Northern port, as he moved a sub there before surrender to block the ore shipments and maybe even mount a counter-invasion, but I eventually chased the sub away with a corp that hit him in port. The interesting thing is that he is now building fortifications around Berlin instead of Western Europe, which I guess makes sense. Anyway, it’s May, 1941 and I’m using the extra mpps on what will also remain a State secret. He has Spain and Gibraltar and that’s where we sit. US readiness just started moving up again, and Russia awaits the inevitable Barbarossa, which I’m a little nervous about as Terif is the Master of adaptation, so I’m not sure what awaits me. Bob