Amona

Amona(Axis) - Catacol Highlander (Allies): game in October 1940. Clausewitz (Axis) - Amona (Allies) - game in October 1941. PGTomli (Axis) - Amona (Allies) - game in February 1941. Amona (Axis) - Tony Lafferty (Allies) - First turn sent yesterday morning, no answer yet.

Thats okay, and I dont doubt the fairness, and furthermore, I dont care much for winning or loosing. But I think these victory conditions force the Allied player to choose relatively early between a 1 or 2 point victory as they require different strategies. An Axis player just has to play to win, if his bid for world conquest goes wrong, he can try to survive for 1 point. IMHO its not the same for the Allied player.

Given weather and the terrain in Burma/Southwest China, an offensive from India to Chungking would be a Very difficult undertaking, and Japs could delay such an operation very easily and with minimal forces. Did YOU ever conduct such an operation, and if yes, was it successful? For the Soviets going down through China to Chungking, okay, but then the capture of the four AXis capitals would be easier indeed. My point is: A 1 point victory for Allies seems harder to achieve than a 2 point victory, because of just Chungking. Thats a bit odd. 1 point victory would mainly be a defensive victory with only taking back or hold respectively Paris, Moscow, Manila , Delhi and Canberra. Retaking Chungking would imply holding on to Delhi anyway. What about changing the condition to: Canberra OR Manila OR Chungking.

Another thing about victory conditions: how in hell (sorry) should the Allies hold Chungking for a 1 point victory at the end of a game? So far I had not a single AOD game, even when the Allies win, where Chungking was not controlled by the Japanese after 1942 at the latest. And how should the Allies reconquer it once fallen?

I can imagine a situation where Germany made a successful Sealion early and later the Allies land in France coming from USA directly and hold Paris at the end of the game but not London. What about victory conditions in this case? Thats only an example that just came to my mind.

Hi, Bill. Thats okay that it will take time. Maybe a thing for SC 3. Some proposals for a future patch of AOD: - The popping jap SFs are first used for the pacific offensive to seize mostly undefended islands. While not cap jap SFs at 5 steps like garrisons of all countries are? They would retain there amphibious abilities, but would be useless in China, India, Siberia or for an invasion of the Western Hemisphere. - Block research of motorization for Japan like Rocketry research was blocked for the Allies in Gold. This proposal is especially for Global gold, where the combination of jap motorization, inf level 2, and the unit swapping feature spells the doom for China no matter how many fortifications they get. - On the different scale: Thats the main crux. The Jap forces are okay for the China war, but the problems arise when the Japs use their army to attack India, Australia, Siberia and possibly even Western USA all at once. And this is quite possible, have seen it in many AOD games already. It doesnt mean Axis will win, I still think Allies have the edge in AOD, but it angers me from the point of view that its a history game about WWII. What about replacing most chinese and japanese armies with corps and divisions and giving China no armies at all and Japan only 3 or 4 elite armies. This way, Japan could still conquer China, conquer the pacific islands with the step 5 SFs, and mount ONE of the possible follow up operations, but not all at once. Is Japan too weak then against an allied counterattack? I would say no. The Asian mainland is inconsequential for the game result, The Soviets shouldnt be able to attack Mandschuria in force if the Axis player does it right before lets say 1944, and to defend Jap home islands and all important Dutch East Indies the Japs would mainly need navy and air.

If the Allies go for Germany first its the decicive operation of the game.

As far as I new thats by design. Likewise, American and british units cant op move in Soviet territory and vice versa, and both makes perfect sense to me. It might be just a game, but its about WWII, and a bit historical realism should be in order. Bringing Jap ground and air units to Europe or Allied units to Russia and operating them around for full cooperation is IMHO more than a bit gamey. And I personally just hate gamey strategies ;-)

While we are at it, I have some issues with the force pools too: 1) Why has the number of allowable carrier builds for USA have been lowered from Global Gold from 10 to 7, while the allowable builds for Japan remained at 5? If its because of the light carriers, why have the jap builds not been reduced too? I dont find it realistic that the Japanese can build nearly as much carriers as the US. The more so, as they have 4 carriers in the build queue plus the Shinano per DE, giving them max 13, while the US has 4 plus Essex and Bunker Hill popping, giving them max 13 too, but only if they have build all 7 allowable builds before November 42, when Essex pops up and reduces the force pool. In Gold, Japs had max 13 to USA max 16, and even that was unrealistic in my opinion. Likewise, Japan can have 3 light carriers, the USA 4. Given the fact what an incredible number of light and escort carriers the USA had in history, this seems far too few for USA too. "Game balance issues" I dont want to hear, given the fact that Jap Special forces which were battalion size are represented as equal to US Marine Divisions, and Jap Armies which had 2 or 3 divisions are represented as equal to a German army which had about 12 divisions. (Or think of 6th German army at Stalingrad with about 17 divisions, among them 3 Panzer Divs. This army alone could have cut the whole Japanese force in China to shreds) This leads me to: 2) Why is the Jap army so ridicilously overpowered? It might be necessary to give Axis a chance to win the game, but its so unrealistic its the most annoying feature of the SC series in my view. Its okay for the war in China, but it doesnt take into account that the Axis player will in later stages of a game use the huge and powerful jap ground forces outside of China and the Pacific islands. And then the scales of forces just dont fit together. That leads to : 3) Why has Japan a bigger ground force pool than the Soviet Union? Thats laughable too. In December 41, Japan had a force of about 51 divisions (which had 4 regiments, okay) and several indepenent brigades/regiments). At the same time, German and Soviet armies counted between 200 and 300 divisions, in later stages Red Army had over 500 division sized formations. The Soviet ground force pool should at least be double as big as the Japanese one, if not more. It can all be weak divisions/garrisons/cavalry, but the Soviets should IMHO have the biggest force pool of all combatants. As it is, the Soviet player has a hard time fending of the Germans in European USSR and at the same time delay the Japs in Siberia, which will defenitely attack as soon as possible if the Axis player has any sense at all. Its not about offensive power, its simply about covering a huge front and garrisoning many cities/towns. When the Japs get so much units to cover all those islands and conquests in China and India etc., why doesnt the Russians have a countless number of cheap units to hold their fronts? Which would be absolutely realistic and IMHO wouldnt unbalance the game too much (or could be countered by giving the Germans 2 tank groups and 2 Mechs more for more hitting power).

Glad to hear that ;-) Would love to have some more fighters and tac bombers for D-Day.

I would definitly prefer it. If Canadian air units can be operated everywhere, why Indians not? And what logic would be behind air units which cant leave a country?

In Global Gold, it was possible to operate british-indian air units all over the map in allied territory. In AOD they can only be operated inside India. Is this intended or a bug?

Thats fine. Doesnt matter very much in my current game, the jap operation will probably not get to Washington D.C. ;-)

If a unit crosses from West USA to East near the Mexikan border at the El Paso loop, it appears far north of Denver (!), instead of in the south in Texas. Can provide save game file to proof. Very annoying in a game I currrently have going, were jap invaders appeared unopposed in the North while my forces waited in the south for the attackers. The more so, as there is a city to operate jap air units there.

I am in :-)

Hi, As Bill said, you can change the number of allowable builds in the editor. Open the campaign and go to country data. There you click on Japan, and build unit data. There appears a screen with all numbers of units for Japan. There you can easily change the numbers.

Hi, searching for opponents for AOD 1.02 1939 scen. Hard builds, other options up to you. Prefer to play Allies. If interested, sent me your first Axis-turn to: kliomene@gmx.de

Hi all, looking for new opponents again. 1939 scenario, patch 1.04. hard builds. Prefer to play Allies. If you like, send me your opening turn to: kliomene@gmx.de.

Allied disaster continues. In June 40, Germany was right on schedule, with Poland, Denmark, Norway, Low Countries and France gobbled up. Chinese were cut to pieces by Japanese. Subs prowled the Atlantic. Now its August 40 and Royal Navy just had a field day when sinking two U-boats. (I always celebrate when I am able to destroy strategiclayabout a unit or two, because it happens so seldom).

Hah, Stalin just got industry tech 1 in February 40, the glorious USSR now makes already 126 MPPs a turn. We will vanquish the Fascists if they dare to attack. On the other hand, France already nearly gone. One more good weather turn and the Nazis are in Paris. And dont let us speak about China...

I am playing the series for about ten years I never learn. ;-)

Yeah, keep gobbling up minors, evil Nazi juggernaut. Stalin can use those MPP! ;-)

One must add that Strategiclayabout is such a good player and I am such a bad player that he will still make short work of me. ;-)

Hello Hubert, to which address should I send the turn?

In a game against steel 32, I playing Allies, I attacked a german sub with a french cruiser west of Iceland near the pack ice. The game froze when the sub dived. I repeated the turn and the same happened. I think its a bug but I dont know what causes it, though I suspect its maybe because of the sub diving and reemerging in the pack ice. Can provide the save file if needed.