Ok, so given the FAQ/errata, what are the US options at the beginning of the game?
From what we’ve seen so far, she can try and reinforce PI (which is still undefendable, but can be made more painful), reinforce Pearl, or move towards the Solomons. We’ve tried combinations of all of the above but none seem to be able to put undo pressure on the Japanese once at war.
What other options does the US have? We wanted to base out of Australia, but the FAQ disallows that. Assuming the Japanese leave the US alone for the first few turns, what would you build with your 61 IPCs (17+22+22)?
Where do you position your new forces?
The overriding constraint we’ve seen for the US is that they have about 5-6 turns in which to force the Japanese to commit the bulk of her forces before Japan is finished annihilating the Brits and Chinese. Once that is done, without the ‘global’ game threat of reinforcements from the West (either Russian or Brit from Africa), the Japanese can turn her full econ to the US and Australia. At that juncture the game is likely over since the Japanese econ will be in the same ballpark, she has more forces on the board, she has no vulnerable econ, and she can coordinate far better.
Given that, what can the US do in the first 5-6 turns to engage Japanese attention away from the Brits/Chinese? Keep in mind that IMO in order to engage them the US has to be able to threaten significant Japanese income or else position herself to be able very favorably trade her forces for the Japanese (in an effort to force the Japanese to rebuild a navy with her IPCs).