help with My Italy game in 1943.

[unmerged(9125)]

Okay, here is the situation: April 1943

I own Gibraltar, former Turkey, France (Vichy never fired) , yugoslavia, Greece and All of africa except the area around liberia where there are a loads of Uk troops and Germany.

My Ic is 280 , germany is around 300. Manpower on the 650 Range.

Now the bad news. The russkies are the province next to Berlin, Germany has his troops in africa playing in liberia area, therefore she is outnumbered two to one and I fear she would be defeated shortly. When I mean shortly, I mean three months at the latest.

Rumania is basically screwed, With the ruskies deep into her territory. Hungary is still intact. Bulgaria isn't in the Axis, but Spain and portugal are.

practically all my troops are in the baku region, where more or less I've defeated the opposition, only 14 divisions oppose me. Italy is virtually undefended.

The Germans refuse to grant me military control, since they have more IC than me. (And by the time they have less, the situation would be even more hopeless)

I'm debating about pulling back all the troops in the balkans and french garrisons to the forts of my borders (8 level forts in northern italy, and maybe try to conserve france, Make theem bleed on the maginot line) That means abandoning all my allies to their fate, and retreat for the balcans.

My army is severely outdated, and I need 800 IC in order to modernize. I have around 80 Infantry divisions, most of them in the baku area, and garrisoning beaches. Also, I have around 8 Tanks in the baku area.

Toughts on saving the situation?

Edit:

by the way, UK is supposed to be out of convois, but the damns troops in africa don't die. Also they are out of manpower.

So concede Defeat and try again? Defense at all cost? cheating?

My god, Ive never seen a game with a Germany that incompetent...

 

[unmerged(104110)]

Whatever happens you will NOT want thse German troops out of the war, so what I would recommend would be giving them a vp in North Africa or Ethiopia (are they national provinces for Italy ) to keep them from being annexed.

As for bleeding the Russian white.... small chance of that happening, you will just have to encircle them somehow, perhaps by holding the Maginot line as you suggested but allowing them to pour into Northern France (with a limited force containing them so they do not spread too far) while keeping your best forces (and hopefully Germany's too) for a strike to the sea

Have you taken Gibraltar and the Suez? I might be worried about an allied amphibious invasion in the rear (or do you control the whole Med) but considering the situation I would not try to garrison the coast, use those divisions for an offensive.

You could use the acceptall cheat to make them give you military control i wouldn't really consider that to be that bad of a cheat

But NEVER GIVE UP, I find it fun to go down fighting and see what damage I can inflict

 

[unmerged(9125)]

Whatever happens you will NOT want thse German troops out of the war, so what I would recommend would be giving them a vp in North Africa or Ethiopia (are they national provinces for Italy ) to keep them from being annexed.

As for bleeding the Russian white.... small chance of that happening, you will just have to encircle them somehow, perhaps by holding the Maginot line as you suggested but allowing them to pour into Northern France (with a limited force containing them so they do not spread too far) while keeping your best forces (and hopefully Germany's too) for a strike to the sea

Have you taken Gibraltar and the Suez? I might be worried about an allied amphibious invasion in the rear (or do you control the whole Med) but considering the situation I would not try to garrison the coast, use those divisions for an offensive.

You could use the acceptall cheat to make them give you military control i wouldn't really consider that to be that bad of a cheat

But NEVER GIVE UP, I find it fun to go down fighting and see what damage I can inflict

yes, possible vp is Malta, nothing more secure than that, since I own suez and gibraltar, and all the mediterranean provinces.

wouldn't they surrender by event?

I guess pulling out of the balcans and trying to converse turkey is a solution, but losing my land link to africa, and roughly half my daily manpower is going to hurt.

I guess if I take military control of all the axis, at the very least an stalemate is possible,

Allied landing? and UK is already south of the spanish territories in Africa. usa isn't in the war yet. It was the russkies who declared war, vichy never fired, so perhaps that is why.

A wing of tactical bombers would pretty much be enough to contain them, but I fear i need my two wings of tacs againist the bolsheviks. Perhaps using naval bombers in ground attack?

 

[blue emu]

Screw defending... attack! Can you take Moscow, Leningrad, Stalingrad, Baku and Sverdlovsk before the Germans lose Paris? A last-minute Bitter Peace would save the situation.

 

[ulrichomega]

From what he said, no.

His troops are in the Caucasus. I guess an extremely fast armored push could get him there, but the Russians are right next to Berlin. He might be able to open a second front that would draw more troops down to the Caucasus, or he might even be able to push for Leningrad/Baltic Coast and cut off the entire army. You destroy their army not their cities.

 

[unmerged(9125)]

Could I take all that before germans lose paris? maybe. But the germans don't have Paris, I do. In this game the germans were incompetent, I had to take care of that, AND after that, come to their rescue in oland, since poland was kicking her ass. :wacko:

That's why ther are 8 level forts in my borders. truthfully, I knew this was a possibility, but in my arrogance, I tought that the AI would put most of his troops in the caucasus and perhaps lose a two front war.

 

[lordgoof]

that is what happened to me the first time i played on easy........except i performed a successful sealion and had about 400IC (i had taken spain as well)

i would suggest starting again....pretty much by 1943 if you aren't in a position to defeat russia, you never will be........you can probably hold out indefinately, but what is the fun in that.

 

[unmerged(57044)]

Ive had germany do this badly when playing italy before. It stems from italy taking france, that messes up germanys "flow" as they normaly take france and they often just sit about and dont go on the offensive. Very annoying but not a lot you can do about it sadly.

I'd just go for it and attack, youve already done very well with italy so see just how far you can push it with them.

If your worried about the ethics of cheating try this... Save the game twice, on one play it normally, on the other bump your ic somehow to just over germanys (force spain/hungary/germany to give you high ic regions with acceptall )and use acceptall to take military control, trust me germany isnt functioning correctly in your game and hasnt been since you annexed france so no matter what you do if you leave germany to use its own troops they wont be helpfull, you need to take control.

 

[unmerged(92480)]

In addition to the advices above:

Dont go in defence, with lower IC and MP comparing to USSR and Allies its death for you. Attack! From Baku rush quickly to Ural and Sibir to take IC. Thats my difference from blue emu's advice: you may split you forces on two groups: Moscow/Leningrad and Ural/Sibir but put a bit more power to second group. That is because even if you will be stopped before Moscow and Leningrad or Archangels (which is probable, because there are many marches and forests and AI will defend Moscow as it can) you will capture his IC potential (Ural and Sibir) and strengthen yourself.

Another thing: Form third army group from new builded divisions and home garnisons and attack UK. Good chances that it has its homeland almost undefended since Allied forces are binded in Africa. Good luck to them there. Strike with 8 divisions at least, 12 is better. Italy has decent fleet so you should succeed.

Give some VP provinces in Africa or wherever you can to your allies to keep their troops and use their troops for defence of your homeland and Spain (its has mountains, its easy to defend there)

Just a week ago I was in same situation but I've played Japan. I took Ural and Sibir and could advance further even when Germany surrendered and I could take UK and USA then while binding USSR troops near Volga, keeping them from retaking Ural and Sibir.

I've started from Frunze right when the war began and rushed as quickly as I can with 50 up to dated divisions (~20 are mot/arm) but USSR still succeeded to defeat Germany before I take Leningrad and Archangelsk.

I tried this several times with same result as above: Japan has good power but Germany is defeated and I am forced to conduct huge ground war against USSR and Allies, which is possible but boring for me.

But I dont like big ground campaigns now, I prefer fleet battles so was bored and left campaign.

 

[unmerged(104110)]

Considering his forces are somewhat outdated as he said and that his manpower/unit org is going to be limited I doubt he could launch a sustained offensive, as for a strike from the caucuses to provinces necessary for the BP i doubt he could do that without getting his own troops encircled and destroyed in the attempt, the front is surely not undefended is it?

 

[chimney]

germany was incompetent because u didnt let vichy fire.

acceptall and MC germany or rush for ussr main cities