The correct 1st turn use of the German Mediterranean Fleet

This is a very treaky question but the fighter in malta was very well placed and can be a very big threat to anything in africa. I take it out as fast as possible. :wink:

I prefer to send reinforcements to libya.

The Meditteranean gambit is a red herring for the Germans. The 8 possible IPCs of Middle Eastern territory are not worth the dedication of 36 IPCs worth of warships. The Italian battleship and destroyer have more pressing business keeping the Allies at bay in the Atlantic. Having a battleship and destroyer bottled up in the Med is a serious mistep. Taking Gibraltar in T1 denies the British a base for their fighters (rendering the Italian fleet unassailable). A T2 link-up with the surviving German u-boats is critical in undermining the Allied bid for the Atlantic. Without capital ships, it is impossible to keep a competent Allied player from owning the Atlantic within 2 or 3 turns. However, through prudent management and reinforcement of the unified Med/Atlantic fleets, it is possible to delay an Allied invasion for several more turns.

Herr Guderian, I like your ideas – but what about that pesky Brit task force in the E. Med? Do you divert air power to take it out? Ignore it?

If you don’t take them out, it seems to me you must be willing to withdraw your Tunisia forces westward across toward Morocco – or hurl them without support against the Brits coming from Egypt and the Middle East.

If Tommy keeps his Malta Ftr active in the Med, teamed up with naval and land units, he could make rawthuh a mess of things in southern Europe, no?

@Guderian:

The Meditteranean gambit is a red herring for the Germans. The 8 possible IPCs of Middle Eastern territory are not worth the dedication of 36 IPCs worth of warships. The Italian battleship and destroyer have more pressing business keeping the Allies at bay in the Atlantic. Having a battleship and destroyer bottled up in the Med is a serious mistep. Taking Gibraltar in T1 denies the British a base for their fighters (rendering the Italian fleet unassailable). A T2 link-up with the surviving German u-boats is critical in undermining the Allied bid for the Atlantic. Without capital ships, it is impossible to keep a competent Allied player from owning the Atlantic within 2 or 3 turns. However, through prudent management and reinforcement of the unified Med/Atlantic fleets, it is possible to delay an Allied invasion for several more turns.

i like your thinking on this one.
if i’m Germany - i always take out Malta, and allied boats. I also have been using them to access the ipcs in the middle east.
Although i see your point, at the same time, i have had some success with forcing Russia to look south-eastward, vigorously defending caucasus etc. This helped me win the game!

I prefer to send the trns to assault Malta with 1inf and 1artl, while sending the BB and DD to attack the UK DD in Gibralter. This does a couple of things;

First off, it positions the Med. fleet near the Atlantic and can become a target for the Royal Airforce, which is a good thing. You can win this battle often enough to warrant the risk (42%). If the UK doesn’t attack, then you are well positiond to deter any attempt at freeing the three southern UK convoys, as long as you keep some U-boats nearby as back-up and fodder. However, let the BB absorb as much of the fighting as you can, that’s why it’s there. Seek small engagements where you have a pronounced advantage with good prospects of survival in the event of a counter-attack.

Secondly, this placement often entices the UK player to go after your Med. trns with his E. Med DD, and occasionally trying to move troops into Greece, which I would never do personally. At any rate, the UK player divides his ships and gives the German player an easy time of knocking them off with ftrs. Granted this often leads to the loss of the Med. trns for Germany, it can be replaced on G2 or G3 with little the Allies can do about it. And if the UK player is trying to make a stand in Egypt, you will soon overwhelm them once your trns is floating again. I have had great luck with this strategy and will continue to follow it until someone shows me a good reason not to. So far, my play group has not done that. Nobody else in my play group uses my strategy either, but that’s what makes this game so much fun. Do whatcha like!

Taking Gibralter G1 is also an interesting tactic, and I have used it once or twice. However, leaving the UK with a fighter in the Med. ended up causing me much grief later on, so I almost always go after it right away. If I think UK might try to place an Inf on Malta, I’ll buy an extra trns for the Med. with bonus IPCs. Looking at it now, this might not be a bad choice, with the idea of taking both Malta and Gibralter G1. Hmmm… it definitely bears looking into. That also presents a thinly veiled threat to merry old England, since you now have at least one trns in range of their island with dudes that can go along for the ride… along with a BB and DD for shore-shots. Not much of a threat, but enough to keep 'em honest, I’d wager. I’ll test-drive this next time I play Germany in AAE. Thanks for the ideas, that’s why I’m here.

^^That’s what I was thinking… :lol:

i almost completely agree with Guderian here. ME and North Africa are distractions. Easier to access them through the Caucasus rather than investing that $44 of axis shipping in a sideshow. However, taking out that fighter in Malta is important too so I would attack Malta using both shore bombardment shots to be sure of nailing it (Des plus BB) then move west to cause damage in the Atlantic.
IMHO, any British invasion of Greece or Italy is easily dealt with since the Germans are near their base of supply and the Brits are a looooooooong way from theirs. Therefore, you can afford to ignore that des/trn Egypt task force.

Africa operation is a hard thing to try, but in my opinion it is worth it.

If you ignore it, you will lose all of africa, the allied troops there are strong enough to destroy the germans.

My first turn always has been destroying the fighter so that it can’t go help the russians. Every plane that you can prevent from going to russia helps you a lot, if you are trying to win by taking moscow.

Only times that I have ignored malta plane, is when my opponents have used ipc to save it. Putting 3-4 inf there usually makes it too difficult to try and knock out. So saving troops to land directly to africa is much better choice. And another thing that is useful in africa when you use 12ipc there, it usually makes the allies get more troops there too. That way stopping them from buying more to russia. The thing that I think of is that you need those oil money to refit your losses from norway, morocco, finland. And get more ipc to keep your offensive going to russia + you have extra money to deny the allies their landings. If you ignore africa, you will be destroyd there + the allies will send reinforcements to russia and that is always a bad thing for germany, keeping russia out of reinforcements usually makes me always win, but if they get free troops more it gives them more options to do.

The fleet that you can gather is big, but it would be wiped out in turn 2 by british, america assault if you give them the chance. But I have to agree that it really is a tricky thing, keeping that assault force in gibraltar is a very good option, and keeping one blocking sub/trans in front to prevent them attacking you is a good option. It makes it harder for the allies to use their fleets anyway they want, but I prefer keeping the fleet 3-4 turns to support africa and make the allies come hunt them with a big fleet and keep the italy secure so that I only have to hit them away from france, netherlands and denmark.

3 things that I find useful in africa. Never attack africa without 2 trans, one just isn’t enough to move troops and fast.

1. It diverts allied players there.
2. The extra IPC will give you more choices to buy and gives you enough to get more troops to russia and not danger your hold in Europe and specially german. I never leave the german without defense, after I notice that allies can make a 2 wave attack, first all british then usa. I try to keep 3 fighters there and at least 8-12 inf defense.
3. It helps your attack to russia if you destroy the allied troops and get to syria and next turn move straight to iran.

Ps. I have won the game with allies on turn 2. Germany had only 8inf and 1 fighter there, I managed to attack with british 3inf 3art and one tank + 2fighters and 1 bomber, the russian player didn’t take them as his when they were in leningrad. His 1 turn didn’t go well with subs and I was left with 1 trans and 2 DD around england. So 1 turn buy was only 2 trans and artillery… :D

@Cantata:

Taking Gibralter G1 is also an interesting tactic, and I have used it once or twice.  However, leaving the UK with a fighter in the Med. ended up causing me much grief later on, so I almost always go after it right away.  If I think UK might try to place an Inf on Malta, I’ll buy an extra trns for the Med. with bonus IPCs.  Looking at it now, this might not be a bad choice, with the idea of taking both Malta and Gibralter G1.  Hmmm… it definitely bears looking into.

Yes I agree with you. It´s definitely interesting to do both
:-D.

Presumption: British atlantic fleet (exept the canadian 1Des/1Trans) is attacked by all subs and airforce available, now the italian battleship in the atlantic will be a boogie man to the allies.
The tradeoff is that by turn1 you only disrupted the british 5ipc convoy. But I think it´s worth it. These ships you sink are very costy :wink: and the more of your subs survive the first turn the more difficult it will be to the Allies to build their fleet and keep it on your second turn.

Initial 12 ipcs: Spent 8 on a transport to attack malta with dest/trans and the battleship will attack the destroyer at gibraltar. It´s accompanied by the second trans and 1 inf. A sub will also attack there.

Effects:

• British med fleet (1des/1trans) may attack your 1des/1trans. If they succeed most propably only the des lives. You now may attack it with the gibraltar sub and your bomber that you landed in france on T1.
• On T1 your battleship/trans may only be attacked by one british bomber wich is suicidal. The following turn it is free to enter the atlantic and may most probably attack the des that switched out your subs that attacked the 1dest/2trans on your first turn. Mmmhh… long winded- but it works 8-)
• the trans may now be used as fodder with the battleship or you let it return to the med to land the gibraltar inf and something else in lybia. I think the second option is the better one if you want to go for Mideast Oil. If you want it keep 2trans floating in the med.

I take Malta, and throw the destroyer out to stop the british med fleet.  Airforce destroys british destroyer in Med.

Next turn I use the transports I bought and the existing transports to have a big invasion on egypt.  2 or 3 turns later im threatening caucasus.

I like an allied invasion of Greece.  I rarely do an allies invasion from the north, I prefer to secure africa quickly and make Germany devote resources towards protecting their underbelly.  Any vichy/italian invasion is probably easily pushed away on the beaches.  A Greek invasion, however, can cause the German player to pull a couple of troops off of the eastern front that they wre using to plug the territories after barbarossa from russian invasion.

LOL Xenon replys to a post from 3 years ago!  LMFAO… as if hes still checking? :-D

The oil money is very important to the germans, they will need every ipc they can muster, and to make the usa pay each round will slow down their inevitable fleet take over in the atlantic.

There are plenty of german / italian units in the med to take care of the spead out brits in the oil regions. If you place those 4 extra troops on lybia and use the tank to blitz from tunisa to take out the 3 brit units on egypt 1st round, then the oil money is the germans after that. Vital to take out the brit fighter on malta using a BB and 2 land units first go, then deal with the brit fleet in the med on round 2, after that the allies have nothing to defend the oil regions.

If you pull that german BB into the atlantic the yanks will use subs, destroyers and their air power to finish the german threat in the atlantic soon enough.

You cannot prevent an allied build up of fleets, its all they can really spend their cash on for 3/4 rounds. If the allies dont do this then the germans will overcome russia with sheer power and oil cash within 4 rounds.

To me, the oil money is the way to victory for those crafty germans…

I usually send the destroyer and the fighter from northern Italy to attack the destroyer in gibraltar and the Battleship and the transport with Artl+inf to Malta to kill the fighter.  The next turn you attack the british fleet in med with the same fghter ( if he’s not destroyed) with the Battleship and transp.

Thought i’d add my tactics for the 1st German attacks in R1. A&A Europe.

Having played this version a lot, i think the African oil $$$ is vital for Germany, and it’s an easy target in 2 rounds. Germany are always fighting Russia for the low IPC borders in the build up arms race, they need that extra $$ as the Usa & Britain will be planning DDay and it’ll be on the way soon enough.

With the 12 IPC’s, buy 2 tanks and place them on Tunisia, buy another trans for the med, this is a quick dash tactic. Spend their remaining IPC’s on troops & art, and all at the start of the 2nd rnd

BB strikes Malta with transport carrying 1troop & 1art, object is to land on Malta, BB will take at least one hit from Fgtr, risky but the BB will probably hit and you have 2 shots at 2 in the landing.

Use the three tanks on Tunisia to blitz the 3 Brit units in Egypt, costly but it will almost eradicate the already weak British presence in Africa. They will be retreating after that.

Use the German Dstyr & sub in s atlantic to take out the Brit dstyr in Gibralter.
Use all the German subs and attack the Brit sea zones, i usually spead them out with the majority on the British BB. Use the bomber and 5 fgtrs too. It may cost 6/7 subs but the Brit navy will be 90% destroyed and will give Germany breathing space.

Attack Russia frugally on R1, smash into E Poland and use the transport to move units from Ger/Denmark too. Use one fighter in an E European attack and land it as near to the med as possible, likewise the bomber heads as south as possible after it’s done it’s work in the channel.

If you use everything possible with overwhelming force numbers on the first round, and throw the right dice, Germany will be in strong position with the oil dollar money on the way.

Germany on 44 IPC’s and above each round enables them to massively build up land units and armour, they need lots of tanks. Forget buying any more naval units for the rest of the game, use the subs to threaten in the atlantic and try to place them all together in a pack.

On R2, use the German BB / fghtr / bomber and destroy Brit E Med navy, landing units in Egypt & Libia with both transports if possible too. Africa will be overrun in R3.

The Usa will usually be paying the oil bill, and 5/6 IPC’s less will affect their buying ability, especially as they start with almost nothing too.

Turn the German BB round in R3 and slip towards the Atlantic, round up the remaining fleet and wait for a gap in the Allied convoys……

Germany need the oil money, that or really good luck on the dice!