Bellows feels the Blues in Britain

[Friar Bellows]

OK, I must suck or something. I need your tips.

The setup: all countries are random; +1 experience for the AI, 0% difficulty; all rules/variations options set; me playing as the Axis; starting from 1939 against Poland.

So, there's no real problem with me taking Poland and France. It's easy. I usually take Denmark as well. Then comes the first really important decision. Take on the Soviets or Britain. Now I want to believe that it's possible to win if you take either choice.

So I choose to invade Britain. It's late spring or early summer 1941. I've extracted my Italian navy from the Med, as they will shield my transports on the south-western end of Britain. I've built up my German navy (add two battleships) and most of it is used to shield my transports on the south-eastern end of Britain. My airforce is also built up slightly (I can't afford too much).

So I start the invasion. What happens? Well, with a bit of luck, I'm able to land 2 HQs + 5 infantry + 3 tanks (give or take 1 inf or tank) within two turns. There is major naval battle going on. I want to destroy the British navy, and with a bit of luck I do, but with a lot of damage to my own navy. But it seems impossible to destroy the British airforce as well. I haven't invested in long range and jet aircraft, and there's no room on the British mainland for me to land them there. So my troops on Britain, who can only get strengthened to a max of 7, make absolutely no headway.

Time drags on, and by spring/summer of 1941 the following really bad bad things happen:

1) The USA declares war on me. This means that the USA navy will finish off my depleted navy and bring infantry and air units to Britain, which then proceed to demolish my land units.

2) The Soviets declare war on me! Aargh! With a bit of forethought, I've built up my eastern front with German/Italian corps units and any minor Axis units (Rumania, Hungary, Bulgaria join me by now). But I only have so many MPP's! Either my western front completely collapses, or my eastern front does, or both, and that's the end for me.

I mean, spring '41 everything's looking fine, and then autumn '41 and it's all over for me! What a turn around! OK, smoewhere in between I launched Operation Sealion, so I shouldn't expect a walkover!

So, any hints? Should I forget my navy and invest in a bloody big airforce (including research)? Should I forget both navy and airforce and just keep buying infantry and tank units? I'm stumped. Should part of my Britain invasion force land on the east side of Britain (just north of London)? Currently all of my forces land on the south end of Britain, and I find it impossible to surround London.

I must say it was much easier when the AI experience was 0. Setting it to +1 is challenging. I fear +2 would be an exercise in masochism.

[Von Kases]

Well, i´ve tried the same path you did and have arrived to the conclusion that to conquer England you need overwhelming air power and to conquer Spain. I found it easier to tackle with the soviets leaving england alone and investing heavily in reseach. By 1943 russia i defeated russia and then after conquering a few more neutrals the england invation when very well

[murks]

Yes, taking England is hard and so it should be. It is the supply rules that make it tough. In terms of supply, Dover is as far from Calais as the north pole. But then getting your troops to England is actually easier than it would have been in reality. It is realistic that you need air supremacy for an invasion to succeed, only that you need it for a slightly diferent reason in the game, i.e. not to take care of the royal navy, but to hit the cities a lot before attacking. My recommendation is to simply not invade Britain on the higher difficulty levels unless you are sure you destroyed much of the british forces in France.

[Friar Bellows]

Originally posted by murks:

Yes, taking England is hard and so it should be.

Fair enough. It's good that it's hard.

My recommendation is to simply not invade Britain on the higher difficulty levels unless you are sure you destroyed much of the british forces in France.

Almost never even encounter a British unit in France. Perhaps I'm too quick for them!