If Japan does not strike Pearl in J1, and you are confident as the allies that the UK navy combined with your transports is sufficient for Europe, why not do a little Island Hopping?
Take the combined PAC FLT plus the Western US Fig, and 2 Western INF, and head to the South Pacific.
Initially land in Solomons. No money, but between the BB and the carrier fighter, your 2 INF are extremely liley to take the island without loss (67% chance INF dies without a counter strike, if it does survive the BB, only a 33% chance it hits your INF anyway). And that is one less Japan INF to worry about.
US 2, move on New Guinea with the same move (but now with 2 figs, the BB, and 2 INF).
It has been my experience that, unless Japan moves to counter with their fleet, US can march right across the south pacific taking all 4 IPC’s in the sweep to East India. Not a major loss of income, but look where that US fleet is now… Japan’s continental backdoor, with troops to land. All the time this fleet has been down there, Japan has to consider where it is… and keep forces in places like FIB instead of sending them to Russia. It also blocks Japan from taking Australia without a nasty naval battle that will probably cost them their fleet.
Combine this with a small ongoing naval build at Western. Tranny and INF to “tail” the main fleet, catching up to double the available INF when the fleet is at Borneo… The next build another loaded tranny and a sub, just in case Japan sends interdiction forces; these forces “catch up” for a strike on East Indies, now 5 INF (US probably lost 1 INF by now). Each round the US dedicates 21 IPCs to the Pacific with a loaded tranny, a sub, and 2 INF. After East India, the US fleet of a BB, a Carrier, 2 figs, 4 tranny’s and 3 subs hit the Philipines (probably empty, since Japan probably sent forces to FIB) in US 5. All the while, US is doing auxillary production for Europe and Africa, 1 tranny plus 2 INF, (and later 2 filled tranny’s as ships return from drops, US income increased to keep them full from Japan’s islands) to keep UK’sAfrica iincome up, and later to Norway to be moved in to provide reserve defense for Russia.
In short, US plays the game in a similar manner to the real war: Island Hopping to get close to Japan and protect UK territories in the Pacific, transporting troops to Africa, and later to Europe.
By US 6, Japan has a serious naval threat on its hands. The above US fleet facing 2 BB’s, a carrier (probably w/o figs), a sub, and a half dozen tranny’s. 19 defensive points with 10 pieces against a US attack of 17 attack points (6 of them “sneaks”) and 11 pieces. And each round delayed brings another tranny and another sub into play, and the odds get worse and worse for Japan. Sure, Japan can do some offensive naval builds, or they can pre-emptive strike against the US fleet in the south pacific. But with that steady flow of US navy heading against them, Japan is going to be out of ships (including trannys) long before that colum of theirs becomes a threat to Russia… the snake is cut off at the head.
And by keeping UK’s income up in the South Pacific and in Africa, UK becomes more than adequate to, combined with Russia, meet the military needs to fight Germany.
