German airbase in Holland r1

@trulpen tue question behind all this is:

Is it really worth it, to put all that effort and resources for one single BB in?

Or is it more like Cpt. Miller states in SPR:
Yeah, all for one single man.

The G BB has a Task, that point is clear.
It depends on you as GPlayer if it fills the task to the fullest!

Help destroying the RN and protecting the Kriegsmarine to the bitter end to folk and fatherland!!

If you are planning on saving the BB for the purpose of another Task, then you should Strafe sz111 with BB/1×Ftr/1×TacB/2×SS and 1xBmbr only.
Retreat after one round of combat.
Your Pruchase for this case should be:
1xDD, 1xSS, 1xCV placed in sz112.
And land your remaing planes accordingly to max out the protection for the Kriegsmarine.

But!:
To buy an AB for a single BB in Holland makes no sense and has no gain nor benefits.

Why?:
The US will come, sooner or later.
-you as Gplayer will lose any Navy build race against the US and US/UK combined.

• you will very likely lose that AB to the US/UK and they will have a way better use for that then G will ever have.
  -you are comming short on eastern front b/c 15ipc’s are missing there.
  15 ipc equal= two Arms plus Inf.
  Or 3 Mech and an Inf.
  Or a Bmbr plus Inf.
  It’ll cost you flexabilty and power of your punch on Moscow.
  The AB can be bmbd by US and your Fleet be taken out via UK by a 1-2 punch.
  An AB also means that at up to three Ftrs will be missing on E-front, five planes if you have a CV loaded.

You may playtest an AB buy in your group and may have some success, but in all actuallty it will not become a solid strategy.

Just some food for thoughts.

@trulpen I agree as well. I don’t think the base or sacrificing the BC are good moves. I also shy away from the CV with germany as it needs fighters to power–buying a DD instead.

Kevin in Game 199 took advantage of the normandy airbase to boggle UK even though I did not taranto. He lost the BB but still had 3 ships and 3 TT tooling around under air cover that were enough to threaten UK and scotland and later take gibraltar. The normandy base let him add ships and potential landers to the fleet after the fall of france.

@barnee said in German airbase in Holland r1:

As far as saving the BB, a lot of people will use it to strafe SZ 111 and retreat it to 112.

Does saving the BB cost too many planes? Is it an effective long end strat? is it only if you buy an ACC on G1?

@trulpen I really like the way you are thinking about how to pose thorny dilemmas for your opponent, but I don’t think spending 15 IPCs to save a damaged Battleship is ever a cost-effective play against an opponent who can calmly respond to an unexpected opening.

The thing is, Germany barely has a use for a battleship. They’re not going to get into round after round of combat where they can keep repairing it and leveraging the efficiency of the free hit. They’re not going to be doing much shore bombardment. At least in the Baltic / North Sea region, they’re not brushing up against factory limits; you can drop 20 units a turn. As aequitas points out, in the long run Germany isn’t a naval power anyway; the US & UK will eventually win control of the Atlantic Ocean; it’s just a matter of time.

Would I spend 5 IPCs to save a German BB? Sure. It’s of some use; it’s a large piece. But 15 IPCs is almost the whole cost of the BB. The Axis need to expand explosively in the first few turns in order to compete; any investments you make need to pay a very high interest rate. The interest rate on rescuing your BB is low because you buy the AB turn 1, then turn 2 the BB goes back into the Baltic to lick its wounds, then on G3 you get to move the BB somewhere. Where, exactly? To hit Leningrad? I mean, OK, maybe – but that does what, exactly…reduces your chances of losing an 8 IPC destroyer? And has decent odds of bombarding one Soviet infantry? So ballpark you’re earning something like 4 IPC + 2 IPC = 6 IPC, two turns later, on your 15 IPC airbase investment.

Meanwhile, if you just leave the BB alone, and let it stay wounded in the British sea zone, it’s got a 2/3 chance of killing a British destroyer or fighter – there’s your 6 IPCs right there.

So, yes, you’re laying an interesting trap for your opponents by inviting them to hit a BB that’s defended by 3 fighters and either come in too weak or pass up on the chance to do Taranto and hit mostly air…but if they see the trap and ignore your BB and do Taranto anyway, then you’ve spent 15 IPC to save a piece that’s really only worth about 10 IPCs at most to the German side.

If you hit SZ110 with 3ftr 3tac 2SB 2subs, it becomes very unlikely that the Brits will scramble even without the BB going there. The strafe of SZ111 is by far the best way to save the BB. It can go bad, but it’s the best option if you don’t want to sacrifice the BB. Sending a second sub to SZ111 is well worth it IMO.

Good idea but not worth the 15 IPC. Taranto isn’t that bad for Axis and many top players avoid it and rather stack 92 in UK1 to preserve the fleet in sz98.

@JDOW said in German airbase in Holland r1:

Good idea but not worth the 15 IPC. Taranto isn’t that bad for Axis and many top players avoid it and rather stack 92 in UK1 to preserve the fleet in sz98.

Very true. Not worth it, and has 0 long term value. Seems tempting, but not. Also not worth it, but is better, about G3 AB in yugo. I think you want the allies in the med compared to 110 or Norway as axis