Survive as France

[unmerged(199161)]

hi yall! my first post at this forum


but, over do you survive playing as France?

its almost impossible to survive the blitzkrieg
if i attack them in 1936, i always get owned
if i extend the magito-line, i still get owned,
if i attack them in the middle of the poland-invasion, i get pushed back
i also tried to send a invasion force to Kiev, but they get massacred

so how do you survive the game playing as France?

btw, i play at coward/easy and still loose

 

[midget_roxx]

Hmmmm. I've only done it by Putting all my forces into the Maginot line when Germany goes after Poland and that worked quite well. Sure it took me a year but I still got there . Try also combining your attack with an amphibous assuly into the north of Germany where you can encircle them.

Take all your forces from your colonies and bring them back to the continet, and only build INF and INT. Maybe some TACs if you want to do some logistical strikes to slow down the axis reinfocements. Italy won't join until Paris is taken so don't wory about them. Also if you feel a bit gamey move all of your troops into UK so you don't have to pay for supplies

Apart from that, that's all the advice I can give you, since you've obviously tried all the other possible means. Although when you say you extended the Maginot line, did you get lvl10 forts everywhere?

 

[unmerged(142769)]

i've had pretty good luck here.

things to win:
INF AND TACS ARE KEY!

1) lots of INF -- rush inf tech
2) blue print trading with uk
3) 2x4 or 3x4 TACs for logistical strike only
4) keep maginot light -- let them attack here and lose
5) FR armor in back to close gaps initially
6) Attack defensively so germans get penalties for multiple combat
7) use artillery in all ART groupings to prevent overruns by panzers
8) use your fleet for shore bombardment in benelux
9) if desperate invade denmark in mall force to ease tension
10) wait and build only INF -- the longer the fight, odds will tilt
11) Realize that france must advance slowly -- you cannot blitz (unless you do so when germany is tied in poland.)
12) pushing south towards austria is the most effective initial direction
13) do not leave your border with italy empty no matter how tempting
14) let england focus on STR bombing and lead interceptor fighting
15) very risky: attack italy first, landing lightly in the south. (a distraction)
16) ahistorical but maybe not: Get YUG in the allies through diplomacy and have a little entente front.
17) Owning Essen cologne and the provinces closest to france will really hurt axis IC....if even for a short period.
18) don't attack luxenbourg!
19) remember you must defeat germany without real u.k. help.
20) benelux loaned troops aren't as good and may be returned to owner just when you need them in calais.
21) holding german ICs is better than beating its army or advancing
22) expect the reich to collapse economically by the time you reach berlin, munich or the czech border, depending on your route.

:rofl:

 

[Zardnaar]

Start a single X99 production ru of miltia in 26 which will give you alot of men by 1940. Don't build alot of inf until early 39 and spam away. You should be able to get 41 infantry by early 40' if you rush it. Build some factories in 36-38 or so. Aslo defend in Belgium and rush forward and guard the river line.

 

[unmerged(199161)]

Hmmmm. I've only done it by Putting all my forces into the Maginot line when Germany goes after Poland and that worked quite well. Sure it took me a year but I still got there . Try also combining your attack with an amphibous assuly into the north of Germany where you can encircle them.

Take all your forces from your colonies and bring them back to the continet, and only build INF and INT. Maybe some TACs if you want to do some logistical strikes to slow down the axis reinfocements. Italy won't join until Paris is taken so don't wory about them. Also if you feel a bit gamey move all of your troops into UK so you don't have to pay for supplies

Apart from that, that's all the advice I can give you, since you've obviously tried all the other possible means. Although when you say you extended the Maginot line, did you get lvl10 forts everywhere?

i got like lvl 7-8 in all the provinces that faces the belgium border, i was able to hold my lines for a couple of months, but when they finally broke trough my front lines, i was fucked


ive spawned alot of armour hoping that a counter attack is going to be successfully ill keep you guys updated

 

[unmerged(199161)]

aright, thanks for all the tips but when i unleashed my attack, i got to about frankfurt when those damn panzers pushed me back......... france sucks

 

[OsirisReborn]

i've had pretty good luck here.

things to win:
INF AND TACS ARE KEY!

1) lots of INF -- rush inf tech
2) blue print trading with uk
3) 2x4 or 3x4 TACs for logistical strike only
4) keep maginot light -- let them attack here and lose
5) FR armor in back to close gaps initially
6) Attack defensively so germans get penalties for multiple combat
7) use artillery in all ART groupings to prevent overruns by panzers
8) use your fleet for shore bombardment in benelux
9) if desperate invade denmark in mall force to ease tension
10) wait and build only INF -- the longer the fight, odds will tilt
11) Realize that france must advance slowly -- you cannot blitz (unless you do so when germany is tied in poland.)
12) pushing south towards austria is the most effective initial direction
13) do not leave your border with italy empty no matter how tempting
14) let england focus on STR bombing and lead interceptor fighting
15) very risky: attack italy first, landing lightly in the south. (a distraction)
16) ahistorical but maybe not: Get YUG in the allies through diplomacy and have a little entente front.
17) Owning Essen cologne and the provinces closest to france will really hurt axis IC....if even for a short period.
18) don't attack luxenbourg!
19) remember you must defeat germany without real u.k. help.
20) benelux loaned troops aren't as good and may be returned to owner just when you need them in calais.
21) holding german ICs is better than beating its army or advancing
22) expect the reich to collapse economically by the time you reach berlin, munich or the czech border, depending on your route.

:rofl:

hmmm french player detected ?

 

[Zardnaar]

I loaded up a game as France as a response to this thread. I IC whored up to about 1938 and didn't build any inf untol I had 1939 inf researched. The games on normal.

Heres my defesive lines for comparison.

The Germans have managed to break through several times, mostly Eindhovern but through Reims a couple of times. COunter attacks from 50-60 units have been enough to thow them back. I usualy attack from 3+ provinces if I can. I've also taken out Italy for the most part and managed to advance past the Maginot line into Saarbrucken but German counterattacks threw me back.

 

[AdmiralNelson]

I played as France to see if I could do it and I had no serious trouble stopping the German advance just with building infantry the whole time. Overloads TC and wears down manpower, but those two negative effects are fair trades for continued survival in my opinion.

 

[blue emu]

From one of my France 1936 games...

To the tune of "Casey at the Bat"...
=================================

Hitler at the Bat

Things were looking pretty lousy for the Nazi Swine that day,
The French had broken through, and then the Wehrmacht ran away!

So when Hoth was trapped near Freiburg, and Rommel in the Saar,
The panic started spreading through the remnants of the Heer.

"Sauve qui peut!" the panic-stricken Wehrmacht soldiers cried.
"The French are nearly here! We must shoot ourselves... or hide!"

Those sneaky French had rushed, and used their stupid "Conscript" tricks;
A million half-trained soldiers, all armed with pointy sticks!

As the human wave of screaming French Militia reached Berlin,
The Nazi leaders gave it up, "OK, DeGaulle... you win".

... best two out of three?

========= ============ ========== =========== ===========

I played it semi-historically... no weird Government switches, no extended Maginot Line, no ahistorical alliances, DoWs or attacks, no Military Control of allies... I just sat in my positions and waited for the Germans to attack me in May of 1940. I had built a whole crap-load of Militia and Infantry... enough to totally saturate my TC limit... and a few extra Interceptors.

 

[JRHINDO]

Is militia spam really that good?

 

[blue emu]

Is militia spam really that good?

It works vs the AI. Most things do.

 

[FPChris]

I usually try to extend the maginot line to the coast, with anti aircraft guns.

 

[Delran]

I took out Germany as France a year ago like this:
1. All my IC went into factories from 36-38 and into extending Maginot line
2. Tech rushed a little, blueprints from UK and got really lucky with scientist defections and discoveries
3. Transfered all French troops into France
4. Spammed Inf and some Arm from 38-39 onward
5. Advanced cautiously covering the entire front, pushing the German guard divisions back slowly while their main army was trapped in Poland
6. Annexed Germany by 1941 and moved towards USSR which triggered the bitter peace

Also, I had a lot of luck, beginers luck to be exact, as it was my first time playing HOI2 and I had to restart several games as France until finally getting it right.

 

[PanzerMan7]

french games can be quite interesting if u attack while germany is in france. i initially broke through in the saar and fanned out across central germany but a powerful army gathered in freiburg and stuttgart meaning i couldnt brek into the south. i started getting more and more resistance on my southern flank but eventually my spearhead reached the elbe. those units sent to keil regrouped and the final drive on berlin began. i had it flanked from the south and north. as i was crossing the oder a huge offenisive opened up right in the center of my flank, just after poland surrendered. i regrouped on my "bridgehead" in saarbrucken and retook the rhineland and the ruhr but was stuck. then germany tried to go through the netherlands and belgium but in reality all they did was give me 40 more divisions. i steadily pivoted around their northern flank but got stuck around bremen and munster. then the russians invaded, huge reinforcements went east, their line broke, and i won...in 1943.

 

[midget_roxx]

I loaded up a game as France as a response to this thread. I IC whored up to about 1938 and didn't build any inf untol I had 1939 inf researched. The games on normal.

Heres my defesive lines for comparison.

The Germans have managed to break through several times, mostly Eindhovern but through Reims a couple of times. COunter attacks from 50-60 units have been enough to thow them back. I usualy attack from 3+ provinces if I can. I've also taken out Italy for the most part and managed to advance past the Maginot line into Saarbrucken but German counterattacks threw me back.

Why have you go so many troops in the maginot line? You probably only need 6 at most in each lvl10 fort

 

[Zardnaar]

I normally keep 9-10 in the line but at the time they were being used to try and advance into Saabruken and Luxembourg.

 

[Delran]

I normally keep 9-10 in the line but at the time they were being used to try and advance into Saabruken and Luxembourg.

You said you took out Italy, advance over the Alps and into Austria, or from Netherlands, as they have no forts there, and it takes less troops to make a breakthrough.

 

[Zardnaar]

I done both. Advanced into Italy and tried breaking out of the Maginot line. Italy only took about 20 odd divisons.

 

[Delran]

I said to cross the Alps from Italy and into Austria, or try to push into Arnhem