Using Germany's Mediterranean Navy

[wardog42]

Many people on this forum have suggested to use Germany’s Mediterranean navy to harass the allies in the Atlantic as opposed to eliminating UK’s Mediterranean navy and taking over Africa and the oil fields. I’ve never used that strategy before but I’d like to try it out. I have some questions on this strategy though:

1. Do you move all of Germany’s forces to Algeria to consolidate forces and to goad the UK into chasing? This would also move the 1 infantry from Morocco and put it with a larger defensive force as opposed to getting taken down by the US in the first round.

2. Do you just leave the UK destroyer and transport in tact? On their first turn, UK could amphibiously assault Greece, Yugoslavia, Northern Italy or Southern Italy with 1 infantry & 1 artillery along with the offshore from the destroyer and they could use the fighter from Malta if they attack Southern Italy. Obviously you can leave infantry behind to defend, but that is 4 different areas that you must defend instead of pushing them forward to the Russian front.

I do see the benefit of taking that UK destroyer out in the Strait of Gibraltar with the German battleship and destroyer with the possibility of using the transport as cannon fodder. These ships would also be invaluable in supporting the u-boats. Please give me your suggestions on the 2 questions above as well as anything else you can add.

[lnxduk]

if england uses the infantry and artillary, you counter with men and air. You just have infantry in yugo and north italy, and it reaches anything they can attack. Also, it’s usually good to kill the fleet with a bomber and a fighter.

[wardog42]

What about the ground forces in Africa? Just ignore them, take them back to the mainland with the transport, or something else?

[Zhukov_2003]

I think taking out UK’s med. fleet is a good idea. taking the oil countries is very useful.

[lnxduk]

or just transport out of africa, and kill the uk fleet with air, trap their men there to go nowhere except take africa 1 ipc per turn.

[Antholin]

I have played as Germany several times in A&AE and I believe that it is important to take out the UK Mediteranean fleet and the fighter at Malta. These units can mostly be taken out in the first turn, clearing the way for you to start landing the Wehrmacht into Africa, opening up the oil rich middle east. Besides giving you more IPC’s, which come directly out of the Allie’s pockets, you can start to move up and threaten the USSR from their Southern flank. That will eventually relieve some pressure on your forces fighting in the Western front of Russia.

[Funcioneta]

1st turn, you must kill Malta, then you could switch to west, but by when Italian fleet reach Atlantic, should be too much allied surface to Italians make some difference. And don’t forget the aircraft. Convoy hunt is for subs (they cannot be hit by aircraft if no dd is present.

Just buy a sub for Atlantic in round 0  :roll:

[xenon]

Yes, 1st turn you have to take Malta. Kill the fighter or it will be used against you. It is the RAF that supports the first wave in a UK/US double strike. They retreat just to return on the battlefield the following round. Annoying! Take out british aircraft wherever you can. 
The btls will be used in the med. A support shot at 4- you will be lucky most of the times. But you need invading groundforces to trigger it, so the trans stays to pick them up.  Later it will be used to first to soak up damage in the attack against the british med fleet and afterwards to give support shots against the desert rats. It will shield your transport from aircraft. Altogether it keeps the med save and will wreak havoc with weak british coast defense. You force Monty to consolidate and this way keep your oil crusade rolling. In my opinion additional money directly from the allies and an additional front with Russia should be prefered to a btls + trans in the Atlantic. They will be “Fischfutter” once they show up. You will disturbe the allied buildup, yes, but it don´t think it´s worth it.

The dest and a sub from the atlantic take out the british dest at gibraltar T1. The dest will be available in the atlanic r2. It is vulnerable to air which is a good thing. A british attack could result in the dilemma to either not liberate the convoy because of losing the only sea unit left or sacrifice a precious 12 ipc fig. One plane less for the invasion on whatever or not liberate the convoy.    :?

[AndrewPeters76]

I personally go for a quasi split. I usually send my Battleship in to kill Malta and use my transport to send over the two Infantry in Southern Italy and drag them over to Libya as well as moving the units in Tunis. I move the infantry in Morocco over to Algeria and my Destroyer from Tyrennian Sea with the sub in the South Atlantic goes to kill the UK Destroyer is Gibraltar Strait. I normally leave the units in the Eastern Med. alone and see what the opponent does with them.