Balance for Soviets

[Mr. Strogoff]

Hello,
I've been playing AoD after picking it up on sale. I've played 4-5 games, but every time the axis just completely dominated the Soviets and had bitter peace by December 1941. I was wondering if this is common with other people's games, or if I've got a really brain-dead Soviet AI for some reason. I'm playing version 1.11D, if that helps anyone.

 

[Pang Bingxun]

1.12 changed the balance in soviet favour. Now it is closer to 50:50.

 

[MJF]

It can depend on when you invade, as Germany. If you can do mid-late summer 1940, the German player will often have an even easier time of it. Don't expect the AI to do this however.

Playing as USSR (which it looks that you are) is certainly tougher, as good defense comes harder for most of us than good offense. I find however that, in AI vs AI games (where I play a minor and sit it out), after Germany succeeds in Barbarossa, they usually ignore the Eastern border, and the USSR attacks back in 1944-45, with great success. That is another strategy you could try.

In my last USSR game, I was able to deny the purges, and still build level 10 forts behind the Dnieper and Dvina rivers, and hold the German AI off (mostly), but then I found counter-attacking very difficult, as they were "Stacked up" quite strongly, and I didn't want to wait, and lose Europe to the Allies! If you play this way, consider amphibious landings in Romania, through the Black Sea, as a counter-attacking strategy around, say, summer 1944 -- If not sooner.

 

[Mr. Strogoff]

I actually was playing as Brazil to start out, since I wanted to learn the ropes of the game. The Soviets fell over without any of my intervention, which I found to be odd. I'll see about switching some settings and playing on the beta and see if Germany calms down enough for the war to last past 1941.