Need some advice with HoI3 - As Germany

[Eurasia]

Okay...I started playing this game this year. I tried once as America, allowing the computer to run the military while I did the rest. And was underwhelmed by how long it took to do anything and how badly the AI's failed at massive invasions - "Why are you sending millions of men into one piece of beach! You have all of France! AGGGH!" I quite the game before the USSR completely absorbed Europe in a massive red wave.

The second game I tried to be Italy and was overwhelmed by how much I had to micro-manage the game. Not a lot of units but so far apart.

So in my third game I went for the Gold....as it were...and I am playing Germany. I decided, right out of the bat, to take Poland as quickly as I could and make it into a puppet state. I let the AIs control much of the military while I controlled a special force of light Panzers.
1936

1937

I realized that I pushed maybe a tad too much. The USA has now joined the Allies and many of Europe is leaning towards joining either the UK or the USSR. I decided to maybe cool off but feel that speed is my only hope, to try to grab as much land before the war starts for real. Also I assume that my own allies will start wars on their own and I need to be ready. On the other hand, if somebody in the Allies or the Communist International starts a world war before I do that may push nations into my greedy arms.

Any suggestions?

I feel absorbing Czechoslovakia would be a good next step now but will that be the straw that breaks the back? Or should I move west and take out France, starting the war, but knocking the Allies out of Europe? And how will the USSR react? I fear history is now totally broken....hmy:

 

[21oliver]

As Germany you want to wait and "fire" each of the events & decisions that happen, in order as they give Germany over 1000 MP and without it you will be hard pressed to take on the Soviets. Breaking the chain (as you did) generally makes no sense unless its a veteran player trying something off the wall and different. Not only do you get all the MP from the Events but you also will get a NAP with the Soviets allowing you some freedom to operate. The more aggressive you get early, the earlier the USA 1) fires up its War Industry and 2) joins the Allies. Neither of which is good for you.

If i were you i would start over, fire the events normally and attack Poland on Sep 1 1939. AFTER that divert from history if you will.

 

[Pro_Consul]

I fear history is now totally broken....hmy:

Yep, as is your chance of survival I expect.

There is a chain of events that begins with the Anschluss of Austria in 1937, continuing by stages through the partitioning of Czechoslovakia all the way to the historical demand for Danzig which triggers the war. There are huge, or rather indispensable benefits to Germany in playing that event chain out, not the least of which is a very large amount of manpower the Germans will need in order to face the Red Menace.

Additionally, by skipping or breaking this event chain Germany misses out on a very large number of cores on Austrian, Czech, and Polish provinces, meaning they suffer the penalties associated with conquered territory when they should be treated as integral parts of Germany. The result of this is a loss of IC, MP, and resources and the presence of partisan activity inside what should be the Fatherland. Finally you raise your threat too high, too fast - with the result you already saw, i.e. your enemies gang up on you early, particularly USA as you noticed who entered the war 4 years too early and thus will be wayyyyyy stronger than they should be (from having 4 fewer years spent under peacetime laws and penalties).

Edit: emu'd };-/

 

[Eurasia]

Well, the USA and the Allies have not ganged up on me yet, as no war has started. They still have all the peacetime laws and penalties in place, for now. I am going to continue to play the game, if nothing else, to see how far I can go and to learn more about how the game works. I am thinking that if the USSR threatens Europe, a three-corner war may end up starting.

 

[Pro_Consul]

OK, that is certainly odd. USA joining the Allies in 1937 without either USA or the Allies being at war with anyone? I don't think I have ever seen that before, even here in the forum.

 

[Eurasia]

OK, that is certainly odd. USA joining the Allies in 1937 without either USA or the Allies being at war with anyone? I don't think I have ever seen that before, even here in the forum.

Is that a good thing or a bad thing? :unsure:

Oh, and a update...outside of Nationalist China refusing to trade with me anymore, and a few smaller nations joining the Allies, not much else changed.

 

[Secret Master]

They may be at peace, but when your threat goes up, they get closer to enacting better laws even at peace.

The USA starts with atrocious laws. Even with the war not started, the USA may be sitting on Two-Year Draft, which would substantially increase her manpower even if nothing else is happening. Manpower laws, in particular, are wonderful when enacted earlier because the additional manpower is cumulative. Give me a US with better manpower laws starting in 1937, and I can give you a US with enough manpower to ignore the rest of the Allies.

The only advantage Germany has in the short term over the Allies (in terms of resources and IC) is that their laws are crap, while yours are pretty good. While there are advantages to throwing away your lead in laws by conquering early, Switzerland and puppet Poland aren't good enough in terms of resources, manpower, and IC provided to make it worth your while.

 

[Eurasia]

Very likely....but I will keep going as best I can. See how long it takes before the Allies come to crush me.

Still no war yet. Sad really, Japan might do better against the European powers (or at least their colonies). Seems to be having problems with the Chinese.

 

[misterbean]

Whatever else you do, keep a close eye on Belgium and the Netherlands. Right now the Allies can "only" get to you through the coast or through the French border. If either one of them joins the Allies, you might be screwed.

 

[Kovax]

The problem with having Poland as a puppet is that all of your supplies during your eventual conquest of the SU will have to cross Poland. Those supplies will follow Poland's limited supply laws, not yours, and you can expect major supply shortages and frequent cases of units sitting there, unable to advance.

As also noted, you don't get "cores" on those lands, so you're only getting half-value from the ones you occupy (further reduced by Revolt Risk), and nothing from puppet Poland except for some tiny amount of surplus resources. Your present situation looks really good, but isn't, or won't be once both the SU and US get involved.

Personally, I can take or leave the "Danzig or War" decision (the merits of taking all of Poland, as opposed to getting cores on some but turning half over to the SU, are debatable), but Anschluss of Austria, Munich, and 1st Vienna are critical to creating a strong and secure GER that doesn't have to worry about fighting partisans within what should be its own borders. I'd play this one out to the point where it becomes obvious that GER has bitten off too much too soon, and then restart.

 

[was1262]

It is an interesting game though, keep posting an update as it goes along, especially if you get screwed and how. You might forget about the SU altogether and try a different strategy.

 

[Eurasia]

Whatever else you do, keep a close eye on Belgium and the Netherlands. Right now the Allies can "only" get to you through the coast or through the French border. If either one of them joins the Allies, you might be screwed.

Netherlands has already joined the Allies but I don't really see it as a threat, because it will be the first to be invaded if the Allies declare war against me. We will see what develops. Right now, eyeing Denmark....but it may not be worth annexing. Romania is worrying me right now - it seems to be learning towards the USSR (for very good reasons of course but still). As for the USSR...not sure how to handle them. Not even sure the Winter War will be triggered at this point.

 

[misterbean]

Netherlands has already joined the Allies but I don't really see it as a threat, because it will be the first to be invaded if the Allies declare war against me. We will see what develops. Right now, eyeing Denmark....but it may not be worth annexing. Romania is worrying me right now - it seems to be learning towards the USSR (for very good reasons of course but still). As for the USSR...not sure how to handle them. Not even sure the Winter War will be triggered at this point.

I'd leave Denmark alone for now. With all the threat you've got, that might be the proverbial last drop. As for the Netherlands, they're not all that dangerous. Being in the Allies does mean that UK and France have access to an area not covered by the Siegfriedline.

I think the Winter War requires the M-R pact. Forget the Soviets for now. Worry about the west.
My suggestion? do nothing. build up your army and airforce. Wait for them to declare war on you. I suspect it's just a matter of time, anyway. That way, at least, you make them out to be the bad guys. Delay US going full-on war economy as long as possible.

 

[Opanashc]

As Germany, I usually lower US unity below 60, and influence them into my corner - that way, they simply cannot fire better laws before going to war (and even then, they are stuck with CGO, he-he), as well as join the Allies due to my threat.

 

[Pro_Consul]

Wait for them to declare war on you. I suspect it's just a matter of time, anyway. That way, at least, you make them out to be the bad guys. Delay US going full-on war economy as long as possible.

USA already joined the Allies, so the threat hit to the Allies for being the "aggressors" won't matter.

 

[misterbean]

USA already joined the Allies, so the threat hit to the Allies for being the "aggressors" won't matter.

damned if you do, damned if you don't. Sweet little dillemma.

 

[Secret Master]

Let's be honest. Unless he's ready to curbstomp the Allies now, it's already over. Time is against him and the US is already in the Allies, so there will be no limited time of spanking the Allies without LL and US support. The other bugbear in the equation is the Soviet Union. Sure, the US is in the Allies, but now he's got to fight the Soviets through puppet Poland AND he doesn't have the benefits of Anschluss with Austria. (This doesn't even address the Munich chain)

An early war as Germany can be fun, but you have to be prepared for it.

 

[Eurasia]

Good news everybody! Siam has joined the Axis! We're saved!

In related news Republican Spain has joined the Allies and Portugal continues to slowly slide towards the Axis but I'm not sure why. I figure Spain and the Allies may be upsetting it but it joining me is going to help us as much as Siam joining us. Same with Latvia - sliding towards the Axis but not sure it will help it if USSR decides to nom-nom-nom Northern Europe. :blink:

Spain joining the Allies does make taking Gibraltar unlikely but I still have it, and Malta marked, for the Italians to take as soon as they can. When the war breaks out with the Allies that is. I also have a few warships (and a sub group) in the Med but I think the main naval battles will be in UK's home waters.

For some reason Australia, while VERY close to the Allied corner seem to be fighting it, trying to slide to our corner. Why!??!?! I know in real life they were not happy with the treatment they received from the Allies but...is it likely they would join the Axis? :unsure:

 

[misterbean]

One potential strategy that I have seen on the forum (which is no longer really viable for you, I think), is to go through the whole event chain up to and including the 1st Vienna Award. This will net you a ton of bonuses without firing a single shot. It will also skyrocket your threat throughout Europe.
What you then do, is simply wait. If they act the way they should, UK will DoW you in the start of 1940.
What this means in a regular build-up, is that the US and the entire Commonwealth will be so shocked by the British aggression towards an otherwise "peaceful" nation like Germany (in terms of shots fired), that they will have nothing to do with it.
Couple this with 4 years of influencing US and supporting your party in the US and the odds of having a neutral US improves tremendously. Coupled with not getting Japan in the Axis, means that, even if they go for Pearl Harbour, it will be a Limited War between Japan and the US.

 

[Pugmak]

OK, that is certainly odd. USA joining the Allies in 1937 without either USA or the Allies being at war with anyone? I don't think I have ever seen that before, even here in the forum.

Might depend a bit on which version he's playing with. The original could get up to some oddball diplomatic shenanigans.