I need some advice for my Historical single player games.

[TalyonUngol]

Im playing as Germany and im doing really well Imo. I haven't had much issue fighting the countries until Soviet Union and USA join in. I then have to deal with CONSTANT naval invasions from UK, USA and Soviet Union all around Southern France, Italy, Turkey, Greece and Bulgaria.


Bulgaria regularly runs out of Manpower in 1939 despite the fact they should be getting cores, Hungary... is actually doing fairly well for my needs against the soviets, but ITALY.... by god this country AI is absolutely horrendous.

He's all over the place, never defending his ports and when the devs buffed the naval invasion AI, it really starts to show. What can I do besides doing ALL the work and making a bazillion port defense here? Should I just kill Bulgaria off in my historical games since he's useless at this point? Should I just make hungary a super country with all the land? Italy right now has pretty much gotten me to lose this game.

Africa actually is going EXTREMELY well. I helped take North Africa, pushed down to Etheopia and now im holding in the North Africa. Spain hasn't joined the war and... Honestly, im runing out of manpower, equipment and patience with all the naval invasions from all sides of the world. I cannot field enough men to hold off all these countries just because Italy is braindead.

What can I do to improve this for my next game since this has just pretty much ended at this point and go on with my one man army game?


Should I just say screw you Italy and just take all of france instead of giving them land since they aren't going to do anything with it anyway? Should I give Yugoslavia to Hungary? Im just really at a loss on what I should do for my single player matches.

Edit: So the reason Turkey looks like that is because Bulgaria capitulated... honestly, this DLC has made Bulgaria a liability.

 

[General Waluigi]

If possible, finish off the Allies before attacking the Soviet Union and before the US joins in. Concentrate all your naval power into the English Channel with air support and naval bombers to destroy their navies while setting up Naval Invasions into the UK. The British have a tendency to leave most of England undefended (until you steal most of it, then they tend to have sizeable armies at the borders). Once you've established your foothold, finish the UK, and then the Allies should all capitulate (unless you're too late and the US has joined). Once the Allies have been destroyed, you can focus on building up your Canadian foothold to invade the US while preparing your armies to invade the Soviet Union.

As for Bulgaria/Italy, they're pretty much the "soft underbelly" of the Axis. Bulgaria should be small enough that defending it with a small army would be feasible. Italy is much too large and has too many ports for the AI alone to defend. You could send a few armies of small port garrisons to guard their ports against invasion, or you could just allow Italy to fall, and then defend your border with infantry, forts, and air support. One good thing about the naval invasions is that they allow you the opportunity to destroy the Allied armies without risking your men at sea, so each force defeated should weaken the Allies until they start going to crippling manpower laws. If possible, attempt a massive surround (using 40w tanks and 20w motorized support) to destroy a massive amount of Allied forces at once, severely crippling them in men and materials, and then use that opportunity to invade if naval supremacy allows.

 

[TalyonUngol]

If possible, finish off the Allies before attacking the Soviet Union and before the US joins in. Concentrate all your naval power into the English Channel with air support and naval bombers to destroy their navies while setting up Naval Invasions into the UK. The British have a tendency to leave most of England undefended (until you steal most of it, then they tend to have sizeable armies at the borders). Once you've established your foothold, finish the UK, and then the Allies should all capitulate (unless you're too late and the US has joined). Once the Allies have been destroyed, you can focus on building up your Canadian foothold to invade the US while preparing your armies to invade the Soviet Union.

As for Bulgaria/Italy, they're pretty much the "soft underbelly" of the Axis. Bulgaria should be small enough that defending it with a small army would be feasible. Italy is much too large and has too many ports for the AI alone to defend. You could send a few armies of small port garrisons to guard their ports against invasion, or you could just allow Italy to fall, and then defend your border with infantry, forts, and air support. One good thing about the naval invasions is that they allow you the opportunity to destroy the Allied armies without risking your men at sea, so each force defeated should weaken the Allies until they start going to crippling manpower laws. If possible, attempt a massive surround (using 40w tanks and 20w motorized support) to destroy a massive amount of Allied forces at once, severely crippling them in men and materials, and then use that opportunity to invade if naval supremacy allows.

Well, the first part is, I actually have done world conquests before but I wanted to give myself a challenge so I was not taking down the Allies in 1939. I also wanted to do a good naval game so I would build up Plan Z. I just wanted to secure the Soviets first before I would make any aggression... just the new naval invasion AI from the Allies is surprisingly good! I was actually aiming to do a historical-ish game where I would be fighting on all sides and it's just frustrating that alot of my 'allies' are useless. Bulgaria only has 12 units and 0 manpower, despite giving them a ton of land... and they should be getting cores too but they haven't been and its... its disappointing. And Italy just is useless. If it wasn't for me, they would lose all of Africa. I hate that.

So, essientially, don't trust the AI. The only AI that seems to be doing any work for me is Hungary, oddly enough so might just give them all of Bulgaria too.

As for 20W motorized... why? Shouldn't I just use 20W infantry to fill the gaps for my 40W mediums?

 

[KubiG37]

You don't get almost any manpower from non-cored territories, so there's no point in giving it to your AI allies to "give them manpower".
It can actually cripple them even more, because they don't have enough equipment/manpower to properly garrison it and start taking increasingly harsh resistance hits. (which you can't even see)

Few side notes:
How is it that you have so much PP, and experience in 1942? Did you hire advisors and such? Not upgrading tanks/planes also seems like a huge waste.
Your stability is also quite low.
If you're getting invasions from the Soviets as well, you must be doing something wrong. At the very least your navy should be able to stop the soviets.
Also since you haven't invaded Denmark, Allies can freely attack through the Baltic Sea, which is potentially a huge weakness.

 

[General Waluigi]

The main reason I recommend 20W motorized is that they’re fast enough to fill the gaps consistently (when in full supply). 20W infantry tend to not get in place before the enemy infantry fills the gaps or encircles the tanks.

I am only recommending an army of 20W motorized infantry to fight alongside the tanks. The rest of the Army should be Hold-the-line 20W infantry or 10W port garrisons.

 

[TalyonUngol]

You don't get almost any manpower from non-cored territories, so there's no point in giving it to your AI allies to "give them manpower".
It can actually cripple them even more, because they don't have enough equipment/manpower to properly garrison it and start taking increasingly harsh resistance hits. (which you can't even see)

Few side notes:
How is it that you have so much PP, and experience in 1942? Did you hire advisors and such? Not upgrading tanks/planes also seems like a huge waste.
Your stability is also quite low.
If you're getting invasions from the Soviets as well, you must be doing something wrong. At the very least your navy should be able to stop the soviets.
Also since you haven't invaded Denmark, Allies can freely attack through the Baltic Sea, which is potentially a huge weakness.

Alright, so don't give them any territory. What about Italy? Should I give them Yugoslavia and Greece then and Turkey? Bordergore issues as I dont think it looks nice to have a germany turkey. lol


As for the PP, I have all of my advisors and slots filled, though I should have gotten rid of one of the PP guys for my spy advisor. But all of my stuff is filled out. And EXP wise, I was using the EXP military high command for the planes and I was in the process of getting panthers to use the exp. I had about 60 days left on that. As for planes, I probably could have done more with that one. I had fighter 1's with a ton of stuff on them but could have put on more I suppose.

As for the soviets, the only invasion from the soviets was in the Black Sea where Romania sits. I didn't really have a navy to worry about. As for Denmark, I thought they couldn't pass through the straight there since neither Denmark nor Norway would give them passage?

As for stability, yea, I probably could have done better with that one. I banned communism and Democracy from my country and those were big hits. Again, could have done better I know.

But I see what you are saying. I will try and fix it up for my next playthrough. Im still going to give Italy the land though just because he needs it and I would think he can handle the resistance better than Hungary or Bulgaria. Im going to give HUngary a good chunk of the Soviet union though.

I think its cool!

 

[TalyonUngol]

The main reason I recommend 20W motorized is that they’re fast enough to fill the gaps consistently (when in full supply). 20W infantry tend to not get in place before the enemy infantry fills the gaps or encircles the tanks.

I am only recommending an army of 20W infantry to fight alongside the tanks. The rest of the Army should be Hold-the-line 20W infantry or 10W port garrisons.

Im using 20W for holding the lines, 40W infantry to push with the tanks in places, and 10W for port defense. As well as 10W cavalry for the resistance((In the resistance section of the game))

I also think my production could use work. I should really get more refinerys going earlier on and less on the military factories from the start.

 

[KubiG37]

Alright, so don't give them any territory. What about Italy? Should I give them Yugoslavia and Greece then and Turkey? Bordergore issues as I dont think it looks nice to have a germany turkey. lol


As for the PP, I have all of my advisors and slots filled, though I should have gotten rid of one of the PP guys for my spy advisor. But all of my stuff is filled out. And EXP wise, I was using the EXP military high command for the planes and I was in the process of getting panthers to use the exp. I had about 60 days left on that. As for planes, I probably could have done more with that one. I had fighter 1's with a ton of stuff on them but could have put on more I suppose.

As for the soviets, the only invasion from the soviets was in the Black Sea where Romania sits. I didn't really have a navy to worry about. As for Denmark, I thought they couldn't pass through the straight there since neither Denmark nor Norway would give them passage?

It still looks like too much PP to me , never had that much.

I give AIs the land they have cores/claims on. And that which I don't want to waste garrison manpower on.
So I think it's not a bad idea to leave Italy their historical territories (Yugoslavia and Greece), there's a good amount of resources they need.
A good thing to watch out for, before you give AI ANY territory is to check their manpower, if it's near 0, don't give them the land. I gave Spain half of France, and everything immediately got sabotaged and 2 years later it all revolted just when I sent all the units away!

Denmark - actually no, if you check the strait permissions, you'll see neutrals can pass through freely. So taking out Denmark is a good idea simply because then the Baltic Sea is shielded from enemy ships, and enemy invasions. So you'll know they will have to land in France/Netherlands, where your Atlantikwall helps and your forces can be concentrated more. Denmark's small industry is a bonus.

Production - well you can post your CIV/MIL numbers and how many factories are assigned to what if you need advice. I'd just say you should always have enough factories on Fighters, because without Air Superiority, attacking is very difficult with any unit. Support AA in templates is also very useful, and quite cheap option.

 

[Orbs]

Im using 20W for holding the lines, 40W infantry to push with the tanks in places, and 10W for port defense. As well as 10W cavalry for the resistance((In the resistance section of the game))

Change the cavalry garrison template to 40w. It will actually save you guns and manpower. You can verify this by hovering over the save button before you click save.

And separately, do everything you can to take Gibraltar. Since you hold the Suez, if you can take Gibraltar nothing can naval invade you from the Med, Rendering Southern Europe, the Middle East and Northern Africa safe. That’s a whoooole lot of manpower/worry immediately cleared, basically saving Italy from themselves.

 

[TalyonUngol]

It still looks like too much PP to me , never had that much.

I give AIs the land they have cores/claims on. And that which I don't want to waste garrison manpower on.
So I think it's not a bad idea to leave Italy their historical territories (Yugoslavia and Greece), there's a good amount of resources they need.
A good thing to watch out for, before you give AI ANY territory is to check their manpower, if it's near 0, don't give them the land. I gave Spain half of France, and everything immediately got sabotaged and 2 years later it all revolted just when I sent all the units away!

Denmark - actually no, if you check the strait permissions, you'll see neutrals can pass through freely. So taking out Denmark is a good idea simply because then the Baltic Sea is shielded from enemy ships, and enemy invasions. So you'll know they will have to land in France/Netherlands, where your Atlantikwall helps and your forces can be concentrated more. Denmark's small industry is a bonus.

Production - well you can post your CIV/MIL numbers and how many factories are assigned to what if you need advice. I'd just say you should always have enough factories on Fighters, because without Air Superiority, attacking is very difficult with any unit. Support AA in templates is also very useful, and quite cheap option.

Well, I dont usually spend it on alot of the decisions they give you. Lol.

And basically give Italy the french parts it wants. Alright. Is Vichy france worth forming or should I just say no and take it all for myself?

And alright, I will not be giving Bulgaria any more land that they do not need. Same for HUngary. I just don't like the Romania that sits there... its just sitting there... and im positive they join the allies at one point. As for Turkey, I make sure to take them down too as quick as I can because they are a danger! I just don't know who to give it to, since Germany taking it over is just... off. It looks bad for border gore. So I guess Italy should take it.

And alright, I guess I'll have to figure out when Im going for Denmark. Might go after them as soon as I finish off France and go for Yugoslavia later. I tend to go France, North Africa, Romania, Yugoslavia, Greece and then push Africa down to Ethiopia to give more supply to the italians, then around this time Soviet Union starts declaring on Romania so... im not sure what to do really. My order might be off.

As for production, I will have to check to see if I deleted the game save. I just know I ran out of fuel and it was like woah. And as for support companies I use Engineer, Support artillery, Logistics, recon and field hospitals. This is for tanks and infantry. If you think I should change this up, let me know! I do wanna do better!

 

[TalyonUngol]

Well. I've given up on these historical games. Singleplayer wise, its atrocious how bad the Italian AI is and then you get these really good naval invasions from Britain and America who just storm through your atlantic wall and your 10W port defense. Until they give Italy an AI that can do something ohter than fail, im out. They dont build up the infrastructure in Africa so trying to do anything there to help them out is pointless. They barely gurad their ports, they poorly declare wars on their own. I just can't deal with these useless teammates. Imma just try and get my historical singleplayer fixes with Japan since I'll actually be able to do something since its just me! I was just really hoping I could handle a solo europe game but trying to do everything by myself with my limited manpower is hurting.

MP wise, it will actually be fun to have a few minors to help out. Even an italian and German team-up is fun! Maybe ill try and Italy game with a German AI. Could work.

 

[Leinad965]

I don't recommend defending ports. My tactics is to have one mobile army (tanks and motorized) nearby invasions (eg. in France) and sending them against any invasion. It is probably more cost effective than building mega army to defend everything and it is VERY destructive against AI. USA and GB throwing invasions and you constantly encircling and destroying many divisions repeatedly. After ten invasions you will destroy something like 200 USA/GB divisions.

For weakening GB I will also recommend using submarines to convoy raiding. GB AI is unable to build convoys fast enough, so they end with many factories producing nothing due to resource shortage.

 

[Leinad965]

Btw, Italian AI has much better performance than histrocally, in my games they helped me many times.

 

[TalyonUngol]

Btw, Italian AI has much better performance than histrocally, in my games they helped me many times.

Well let me get your italian AI cause I've been doing all the work. If it wasn't for me, Italy would have lost Africa.

 

[him_15]

Put some garrison in port, have some mobile forces around, just let the Allied do free invasion freely, they would die slowly without supplies then finish them off.

 

[KubiG37]

Regarding planes:
I usually have no problem achieving Air Superiority and cause a lot of damage early in the wars, but it becomes more difficult over time, one problem being lack of rubber, and later lack of enough Oil/Fuel (for those thousands of planes)

If Japan declares war on Netherlands, but doesn't conquer Indonesia, you'll end up almost without any rubber for import. Thankfully synthetic is usually enough.

Anyway I found once you conquer France the Allied Air Force becomes almost completely braindead, and unless you start directly bombing their land they won't send a single airplane into any of your air zones (few Strat bombers at times, but out of range of their escorts). So it's a waste of fuel trying to fight them when you can save the fuel for the Soviets for example.

Support companies/templates:
-I think you should consider the support AA, replacing either support artillery (I believe you already would have enough artillery in the template) or Recon (which isn't that useful many people claim, and in case of Mot.Recon drains even more fuel/trucks). I generally use 9inf/3 Art Infantry as a main infantry force. 40 width is an overkill against AI and just eats all the supply.
-The thing is it can also double-act as an AT weapon. AA2 being roughly equivalent of AT1, AA3 being equivalent of AT2. Against AI which rarely produces medium tanks in any meaningful numbers, it is perfectly enough.
-And third it only costs Steel to produce, which you have plenty of, and saves some fuel/rubber by not needing so many planes later.

 

[Casko]

This might be purely a personal thing, but for me, I usually have more luck with invading through the North Sea and the East coast of UK or into Scotland with a bunch mountaineer 7/2 divisions with AA as my spearhead to secure proper beach head, as I feel AI British tends to doomstack its navy to Channel.

Similarly, if you're having troubles dealing with AI's fighter spam, it might be good idea to rush Fighter2 bit early, and upgrade their engines and weapons to shoot down all competition.

And do use the German focus tree to just take control of Romania, and use all their oil to fuel your army if it is too hard to gain enough fuel from middle east alone.

As for naval Invasions, those really aren't all that dangerous due to how bad AI tends to be, though its been made slightly more competetent, and one easy way to deal with it is, to simply leave 10width garrison divisions onto the coast with token fighters on interception, and couple tanks as a backup in case AI takes a beach head.

And perhaps it is just me, but I prefer 20width over 40width when it comes to single player, as they're cheaper, and work just as well if you're not using things like Expert AI or other mods that touches AI templates.

 

[TalyonUngol]

This might be purely a personal thing, but for me, I usually have more luck with invading through the North Sea and the East coast of UK or into Scotland with a bunch mountaineer 7/2 divisions with AA as my spearhead to secure proper beach head, as I feel AI British tends to doomstack its navy to Channel.

Similarly, if you're having troubles dealing with AI's fighter spam, it might be good idea to rush Fighter2 bit early, and upgrade their engines and weapons to shoot down all competition.

And do use the German focus tree to just take control of Romania, and use all their oil to fuel your army if it is too hard to gain enough fuel from middle east alone.

As for naval Invasions, those really aren't all that dangerous due to how bad AI tends to be, though its been made slightly more competetent, and one easy way to deal with it is, to simply leave 10width garrison divisions onto the coast with token fighters on interception, and couple tanks as a backup in case AI takes a beach head.

And perhaps it is just me, but I prefer 20width over 40width when it comes to single player, as they're cheaper, and work just as well if you're not using things like Expert AI or other mods that touches AI templates.

Im not invading the UK early as I said before. This was all meant for a long historical game. And unfort, I just don't have enough attention span to pay attention to the naval invasion alert to know when they invade me. I was hit hard last game to a massive normandy invasion that I saw too late. They doomstacked over 4000 fighters over it, way more than what I had. I think it was all America though.

 

[Casko]

Im not invading the UK early as I said before. This was all meant for a long historical game. And unfort, I just don't have enough attention span to pay attention to the naval invasion alert to know when they invade me. I was hit hard last game to a massive normandy invasion that I saw too late. They doomstacked over 4000 fighters over it, way more than what I had. I think it was all America though.

Ah.
if that's the case, I'd say that best way to deal with that is to go Atlantikwall mode, and put level 2 coastal ports across the French coast, and simple 20with infantry with support AA, so you can literally forget about the French.
This tends to work for 99% of issues you might have with Americans, as the support AA mostly deals with the air superioty malus you're suffering, and the units being 20width means AI's divisions can't break them with its ragtag invasions.

 

[TalyonUngol]

Ah.
if that's the case, I'd say that best way to deal with that is to go Atlantikwall mode, and put level 2 coastal ports across the French coast, and simple 20with infantry with support AA, so you can literally forget about the French.
This tends to work for 99% of issues you might have with Americans, as the support AA mostly deals with the air superioty malus you're suffering, and the units being 20width means AI's divisions can't break them with its ragtag invasions.

so use 10W to cover the ports elsewhere while 20W covers Normandy? Hmm alright.