The Spanish Beachhead: American Strategy

Hey young grasshopper,

I realize that it has been a while since this topic has last been replied to, but I have a game coming up and thought it would be fun to use the Spanish beach head strategy.
I remember watching your video when you posted it at think it is a great way to execute the Spanish beach head. Sadly it seems your video can no longer be accessed on youtube. Could you please re-upload it?

@Maxheimer:
This was how I did it (more or less)

1st  Round

Purchase: 50 IPC
1x Transport, 1x Destroyer (SZ101)
2x Infantry (CUS)
1x Submarine, 1x Carrier, 1x Transport (SZ10)

Move:

SZ35 -> SZ54
to Guam with 1x Fighter
to SZ10 with SZ26
to SZ10 with 2x Fighter (Hawaii)
to WUS with 1x Str. Bomber
to WUS with 1x Fighter (EUS) (because there was no German Submarine at SZ106)

2nd Round

Purchase: 53 IPC
4x Transport, 1x Carrier (SZ101)
3x Infantry (WUS)

Move:

SZ10 (except 1x Submarine and 2x Destroyer) -> SZ89
to Southeast Mexico with 2x Infantry, 1x Artillery (WUS)
to Wake Island with 1x Fighter (Guam)
to SZ101 with 1x Fighter (WUS)
to CUS with 2x Infantry, 1x Mech. Infantry (WUS)

3rd  Round

Purchase: 53 IPC
2x Transport, 1x Carrier, 2x Fighter (SZ101)
1x Infantry (CUS)

Move:

to SZ86 with 3x Transport
to Brazil with 2x Infantry, 1x Artillery (SE Mexico)
to SZ106 with the remaining Atlantic fleet
to Quebec with all ground (except AAA)
to WUS with 1x Fighter (Wake Island)
to CUS with 3x Infantry (WUS)
to SZ101 with 1x Fighter (EUS)

4th  Round

Purchase: 72 IPC
4x Submarine, 3x Destroyer (SZ10)
2x Str. Bomber (WUS)

Attack: on Spain with Quebec, Brazil, EUS, CUS (to SZ91 with SZ86, SZ101, SZ106)

5th  Round

Purchased 20 land units (EUS + CUS) but not yet a Minor IC in Spain, but this depends on the Axis play.

I like the spanish beach strategy from time to time.

@Cow:

I like the spanish beach strategy from time to time.

I agree but I also would state that it depends on the group you play with. If you have a closed group of friends who have played multiply games as Axis or Allies and the group is exploring these tactics it could be you do not want to do Spanish Beach Head because your friends are set up ready as the German/Italy player for this tactic because of previous success.

The Spanish Beach Head is a great tactic by the Allies in G40 against the Euro Axis powers. If they can take Spain, reinforce it and get the minor on it….Germany and Italy have a hard time against it. Also it relieves a lot of stress from Russia.

BUT

The problem with G40 is that is a Global game and Japan can win it for the Axis with good play, from Japan, because the USA and UK are so focused to push the beach head towards Paris and putting a lot of resources to the beach head. USA has gone all in on a KGF tactic and it becomes a race against time.

Which leads into the idea that the victory rules of Global are out of whack. Italy and Germany fall in the same turn that India and ANZAC fall…AXIS WIN!!!

So two colonies of the English Empire are taken out and the UK and USA just call it quits…OMG!!! Australia and India are gone!!!

( I realize it is just a game and there must be very defined rules for victory or defeat. I just think that the rules for that are un balanced and favor the Axis over the Allies in the OOB rules)

Thank you Fiera for the summary:)

I actually played the strategy last Tuesday from what I could read in this thread and what I could remember for the video - and it failed miserably. Mostly I think because I failed with UK round 1 and tried to not do Taranto. Italy grew into a monster and by the time I did my landing in spain Italy helped defend Germany so effective that I coulden’t rescue Russia in time.

I will definitely try it again soon - and hopefully with success  :-D

The most dangerous thing about this idea is that if you give Turkey to Germany, or have to fight over it, I don’t see Iraq (then Egypt) holding out once Russia is down.  Turkey is a straight road to the last Allied marshaling area.

Then that’s VC win on the Euro map.

Japan in our last game has 3 original territories, subs all over its money, its still making 56+

@taamvan:

The most dangerous thing about this idea is that if you give Turkey to Germany, or have to fight over it, I don’t see Iraq (then Egypt) holding out once Russia is down.�  Turkey is a straight road to the last Allied marshaling area.

Then that’s VC win on the Euro map.

Japan in our last game has 3 original territories, subs all over its money, its still making 56+

I agree that the Spanish Beach Head plan of attack could be the end of the Allies.

The plan though has HUGE upside if executed at the right time and the UK/USA are poised to pull it off and continue to make advances in the following turns.

When is the right time? no clue, that is totally up to what the “board” looks like, what strategies did the UK/USA set out with on Turn 1. There are so many random variables.

The UK/USA cannot switch the plan up in mid stream on lets say turn 5 to go Beach Head when the UK is not prepared in the Middle East and the USA has no shuck up and ready to SZ91 to keep funneling troops into Spain. So, when the game starts the UK/USA player have to have a discussion that they will attempt to at least build the necessary units to perform the Spanish Beach Head and be able to support it. That does not mean that is the #1 plan but have it in mind.

It is no different than the plan that the USA stacks up SZ91 and has troops ready to go to invade Denmark and then the UK follows up with its TRS/Units in England to jump into the Baltic and take a unguarded or lightly defended Germany on a one two punch “Can open” move. If the UK/USA do not make the efforts to at least set up this situation or the Beach Head tactic then during the mid part of the game they have no chance to switch over to those plans.

Well, he could blow up Russia, THEN blow up Turkey at his leisure, but its more obvious for Germany just to take his 4 factories north of you and his 4 objectives and pour units into your last bastion.

I’m not a fan of KGF (at all or anymore), it does nothing to slow Germany down, reduce its income, or tie up more than 1-2 turns of troops.    Pouring all your resources into the Atlantic US1-4 is a recipe for getting VCd in the Pacific or, barring that, an overwhelming Japan that backdoors Persia and Russia.  Add to that handing 3-4 neutrals to the Axis that they can use to bulk their troop stacks, and its a more difficult…perhaps tenable KGF plan, not sure.

Even if Germany is totally snoozing in France, he has to be totally asleep to miss the USA buildup, still his mobile units can travel through Normandy or S-France without blitzing and blow up whatever lands…the geometry of Europe is far too favorable to the Axis (all defense areas are 2 spaces from build areas).