Hi fellow A&A enthusiasts, my name is Jeff and I’m in Boise Idaho. Just started playing over the summer and I’m hooked. Started with a few other guys in the neighborhood playing the classic version a friend owned and then we graduated to Spring 1942. Played that all fall and winter and then my wife surprised me with Global for Christmas. I had to set it up right away and it was overwhelming to say the least. I’ve played Europe several times and Pacific once but Haven’t had the chance to play Global yet- I think we’re still intimidated by the rules and sheer size of the game. Considering our ‘42 games could last 12+ hours I can’t imagine Global can be played in less than 15-20!

Looking forward to reading other posts and trying new strategies!

I apologize if this has been discussed already (I didn’t see anything when I was searching the message board), but Curious what everyone thinks about proactively pulling out of London on UK2. Ive been thinking about the cost of such a move and I think it balances out and may even put me in a better position down the road, especially if Germany looks like it is preparing for Sea Lion.

Defending London can be a pricey proposition, especially if Germany is throwing everything it has at you, but I’m asking myself is it really important to keep London? If you invest heavily to defend at all costs, you end up with a lot of IPCs potentially trapped. Yes, by retreating you’re guaranteed to lose your banked IPCs when London falls, but there is a good chance you’ll lose them anyways, especially if Germany is committed to Sea Lion. You have to ask at what cost do I try to defend?

Bringing the US and Russia into the game early is a wash when you look at the 20 IPCs and 9 IPCs they get respectively. Germany does gain the 8 IPCs for controlling England and Scotland, but Germany no longer gets the 5 IPCs for not being at war with the Soviets so a net gain of 3 at the end of the day. To me getting my fighters and bomber out on UK2 along with whatever navy survives out on UK1 is worth more than 3 IPCs a round IMO.

To prepare for my evacuation, on my UK1 buy I would invest in S Africa a fighter and tank to help push north and take out the Italian presence in Africa and meet up with my other troops in Egypt. With my remaining IPCs I’d buy 4 infantry to put in England so When the Germans do invade on G3, I’ve moved out my fighters and bomber already and hopefully take out a few German fighters with the 5 AAA (consolidate from Scotland) and make a dent into the German landing force with my 8 infantry and 1 MI left behind. This is all based on a G3 Sea Lion and getting a UK2 buy before London falls, where I’d have 34 IPCs to spend. Once again I would invest in SA two bombers and another fighter to bolster my fire power. If I’ve managed to not lose any planes in the Med on UK1 my combined air power would be 8 fighters, 1 TB and 2 SB, more than enough to cause significant disruption in n Africa and the Med. I would also have attacked the Italian fleet on UK1 to weaken their position in the Med.

Knowing the US could liberate London if I want to go that route, it seems to make sense to get as much out of London so I can use them more effectively elsewhere. Thoughts?

I will share a tough luck experience for my buddy whom I was playing against. He was attempting Sea Lion on G3 with 7 fighters, 5 TB, 2 SB, a Battleship, Crusier and 4 TTs, carrying 4 infantry and 4 Tanks. I had 5 AAA, 4 Fighters, 1 tank, 1 TB and 18 infantry. The odds were slightly in my favor, but the first wave of rolls didn’t help his chances. I had only 1 hit on 14 tries with my AA and he hit with both ships, but then he only got only 6 hits with the rest of his attack. On my first roll with my 18 infantry I got 10 hits! We were both shocked. I then got another 5 hits with the rest so 15 defensive hits to 8 offensive. Statistically it should never have happened. I wiped his ground forces and more than half of his Luftwaffe and left him badly crippled. The US and Russians were entering the next round so it was pretty much a death blow.

What he should have done (but I never pointed it out to him) was land in Scotland so he could essentially double his landing force and buy a few more bombers. Even with me getting an extra build to defend, I think he would have probably had a 75-80% chance of success.

Edit - I ran the numbers and he would have had an 80% chance of winning if I buy all infantry and 92% chance of winning if I buy 4 infantry a tank and a fighter and he buys 3 more bombers.

@suppressmeajumma I prefer to move my med fleet below the Suez to SZ 81 for safety from the Italian fleet/air units and wait to see how the Italians respond.

Here are the steps I take:
COMBAT PHASE

• Attack Italian D and T in SZ 96 with my Fighter and TB and land in Egypt (good chance both survive)

NON-COMBAT

• Move fleet to SZ 81 except Transport which goes to Malta and picks up Inf and AAA - joins fleet and drops off cargo in Egypt
• Move D from SZ 71 up with the fleet in SZ 81
• Move everyone out of Alexandria back to Egypt (Alexandria has no value so nothing lost if the Italians in Tobruk advance)
  *Move my lone Inf from AE Sudan to Egypt and advance both units from South Africa toward Ethiopia.
  *Build a Minor IC in Egypt

You’ll have a nicely consolidated force in Egypt with build capabilities and where you now have:
6 Inf
2 Ar
1 MI
1 Tank
1 fighter & 1 TB (hopefully both, but at least one)
1 AAA

You have a few options depending on how Italy plays turn 1.

If they transport troops from Italy to Alexandria and move Tobruk forces in as well, they can’t attack until turn 2 so you have time to get a build in (Would probably go with three Art so now five of your six infantry are attacking at 2.You’ll be well matched from a defensive position.

If they are focused on France, you can now blitz your tank and MI into Ethiopia along with the MI from South Africa, load 1 Inf and 1 Art on transport and land in Ethiopia. Send in whatever planes you have and send your cruiser for the amphibious assault strike. You will win pretty decisively. If The Italian player sends transports down on T2 to Tobruk still you have time to return to defend Egypt before they can attack.

Depending on what happened during G1 and if I have ships remaining, I may bring my U.K. fleet from The north down to SZ 91 to join my cruiser off of Gibraltar and bring my T and D with 1 Inf and 1 tank down from SZ 106. Now I have two fleets on both sides of the Med where I can squeeze the Italian fleet and put a lot of pressure on Italy itself. I like this approach because it quickly removes Italy from the African continent and allows me to either attack Italy or reinforce Russia as well.

The other thing that needs to be happening is building up a strong US landing force over the first three buys (usually 4 transports, some Inf, a carrier with two planes, a battleship to go along with the T and D I already have). I move the whole US fleet to SZ 91 on my first move and from there I can hit anywhere Italy to Norway On the next turn as long as there are no axis ships to impede my movement.

A lot to digest, but something I’ve found to be successful. As everyone always says though, the plan is great on paper and depends on how Th e enemy reacts.

Question regarding the Danish Straits. If the US lands in Norway and is able to build a MIC on the following turn, can newly built ships then be placed in the Baltic Sea, bypassing the need to control Denmark? I assume it is possible When looking at Norway’s shoreline and touching four SZs, I just wouldn’t be able to bring any existing ships through the Straits without taking Denmark. Am I correct with this assumption?

@witt appreciate the clarification!

@marshmallowofwar thanks to both you and @AndrewAAGamer for clarifying. Thought I had a sneaky way to slow him down, but will have to give it some more thought!

Didn’t want to start a new thread, so dropping my convoy disruption question here.

If I have subs sitting off Normandy to disrupt the German convoys and he brings any ship other than a destroyer, can I remain undetected in that SZ and still conduct the disruption? If I elect to submerge to avoid conflict, can I still conduct my CD at the end of the German turn or does submerging negate this feature?

@marshmallowofwar said in Sea Zone Movement:

@jscam74 said in Sea Zone Movement:

Another question regarding sea zone movement. My opponent took his German fleet into the Med after taking Gibraltar. If I place an American destroyer in SZ91 to force him to engage and essentially slow his movement capability, can he choose to only send his planes during combat phase to clear the SZ and then during non-combat phase move his fleet through SZ91 (and beyond - would technically still have three spaces) or since it was recently hostile is he confined to stay put until his next turn? Obviously he could also send his whole fleet into battle, but the rules are clear about his movement being done in this case. I couldn’t find anything about the scenario I raised.

All naval and air units present in the sea zone are presumed to be present for the combat. If the units remain in sea zone 91 during combat, they are presumed to have participated in the combat. So, if your opponent leaves the ships in sea zone 91 for the combat, they are in the combat and cannot move during non-combat movement.

What your opponent CAN do is move the naval units during the combat movement phase to avoid them being included in the combat. In this case the end result is the same, but when a transport is involved the end result is not the same.

This is an example of a situation where you must do non-combat movement during the combat movement phase to avoid the units being involved in combat.

Marsh

Hey Marsh - so how would it play out if he has moved to SZ92 and I send my destroyer from the US to block the strait? He has 2 ACC with 4 fighters, one BB and one Cruiser so trying to determine if he can send his planes during the combat phase to clear my destroyer and then during non-combat have his fleet leave the Med and chase down my fleet. Trying to slow him down and wasn’t sure if I could use this strategy. Previous response from someone else said the SZ would have been cleared by the planes so his fleet could move freely through SZ91. Just want to clarify.

Question regarding the Danish Straits. If the US lands in Norway and is able to build a MIC on the following turn, can newly built ships then be placed in the Baltic Sea, bypassing the need to control Denmark? I assume it is possible When looking at Norway’s shoreline and touching four SZs, I just wouldn’t be able to bring any existing ships through the Straits without taking Denmark. Am I correct with this assumption?

Another question regarding sea zone movement. My opponent took his German fleet into the Med after taking Gibraltar. If I place an American destroyer in SZ91 to force him to engage and essentially slow his movement capability, can he choose to only send his planes during combat phase to clear the SZ and then during non-combat phase move his fleet through SZ91 (and beyond - would technically still have three spaces) or since it was recently hostile is he confined to stay put until his next turn? Obviously he could also send his whole fleet into battle, but the rules are clear about his movement being done in this case. I couldn’t find anything about the scenario I raised.

Ultimately I’m trying to create a picket line to slow him from responding to my US fleet heading to Iceland for an eventual landing in Norway. If I can put a destroyer in 91 and then on the next turn another in SZ104 and SZ103 I could force him to take three rounds before he could reach Norway.

Appreciate the help!

I apologize if this has been discussed already (I didn’t see anything when I was searching the message board), but Curious what everyone thinks about proactively pulling out of London on UK2. Ive been thinking about the cost of such a move and I think it balances out and may even put me in a better position down the road, especially if Germany looks like it is preparing for Sea Lion.

Defending London can be a pricey proposition, especially if Germany is throwing everything it has at you, but I’m asking myself is it really important to keep London? If you invest heavily to defend at all costs, you end up with a lot of IPCs potentially trapped. Yes, by retreating you’re guaranteed to lose your banked IPCs when London falls, but there is a good chance you’ll lose them anyways, especially if Germany is committed to Sea Lion. You have to ask at what cost do I try to defend?

Bringing the US and Russia into the game early is a wash when you look at the 20 IPCs and 9 IPCs they get respectively. Germany does gain the 8 IPCs for controlling England and Scotland, but Germany no longer gets the 5 IPCs for not being at war with the Soviets so a net gain of 3 at the end of the day. To me getting my fighters and bomber out on UK2 along with whatever navy survives out on UK1 is worth more than 3 IPCs a round IMO.

To prepare for my evacuation, on my UK1 buy I would invest in S Africa a fighter and tank to help push north and take out the Italian presence in Africa and meet up with my other troops in Egypt. With my remaining IPCs I’d buy 4 infantry to put in England so When the Germans do invade on G3, I’ve moved out my fighters and bomber already and hopefully take out a few German fighters with the 5 AAA (consolidate from Scotland) and make a dent into the German landing force with my 8 infantry and 1 MI left behind. This is all based on a G3 Sea Lion and getting a UK2 buy before London falls, where I’d have 34 IPCs to spend. Once again I would invest in SA two bombers and another fighter to bolster my fire power. If I’ve managed to not lose any planes in the Med on UK1 my combined air power would be 8 fighters, 1 TB and 2 SB, more than enough to cause significant disruption in n Africa and the Med. I would also have attacked the Italian fleet on UK1 to weaken their position in the Med.

Knowing the US could liberate London if I want to go that route, it seems to make sense to get as much out of London so I can use them more effectively elsewhere. Thoughts?

I will share a tough luck experience for my buddy whom I was playing against. He was attempting Sea Lion on G3 with 7 fighters, 5 TB, 2 SB, a Battleship, Crusier and 4 TTs, carrying 4 infantry and 4 Tanks. I had 5 AAA, 4 Fighters, 1 tank, 1 TB and 18 infantry. The odds were slightly in my favor, but the first wave of rolls didn’t help his chances. I had only 1 hit on 14 tries with my AA and he hit with both ships, but then he only got only 6 hits with the rest of his attack. On my first roll with my 18 infantry I got 10 hits! We were both shocked. I then got another 5 hits with the rest so 15 defensive hits to 8 offensive. Statistically it should never have happened. I wiped his ground forces and more than half of his Luftwaffe and left him badly crippled. The US and Russians were entering the next round so it was pretty much a death blow.

What he should have done (but I never pointed it out to him) was land in Scotland so he could essentially double his landing force and buy a few more bombers. Even with me getting an extra build to defend, I think he would have probably had a 75-80% chance of success.

Edit - I ran the numbers and he would have had an 80% chance of winning if I buy all infantry and 92% chance of winning if I buy 4 infantry a tank and a fighter and he buys 3 more bombers.

@andrewaagamer said in If you were Germany what would you do?:

Can’t blitz into Denmark as any armor must stop in West Germany due to the infrastructure.

That’s right - so hard to try and assess the board when you’re not sitting in front of it…

@maddabout oh - missed that. In that case, I’d still blitz through to Denmark and then during the NC phase move infantry into W Germany to reinforce. Everything else should still be doable.

Let us know how it turns out!