An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

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Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

If I make the move for the Chicoms into the mountain hex, they will become disrupted due to the weather. The earlier ideas for moves will be of use later, depending on what Japan does. The weather is against them too, so for now, this is good. Only one AT moved for USSR. I don't think we will try for the Finnish annexation.
Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

CW air rebase. The Bomber had the range to make it to Malta. Will go to Egypt next impulse.

During the CW remove air unit phase, a low strength land bomber was removed. Forgot to add that. One more pilot for next turn.
Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

Shifted two 5 strength fighters closer to Belgium on the English coast.
Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

Impulse 3. Weather is bad. Will choose actions in the morning.

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Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

Before I go to bed, I want to add that in light of my big misunderstanding of the conquest rule, I am considering reloading the last Axis impulse in order to try to take Lodz, to complete the conquest. I really do not like to reload games as I mentioned earlier, but this really does fall under a noob mistake. The last impulse of Sep/Oct for the Axis is still in the autosave folder. All of the air is unorganized, but the ground units that made the attack on Warsaw are still there. This would be the impulse that followed the attack on Warsaw. I have the moves in Asia in the AAR, and can copy them in the replay. The only other thing that would be missed is the HQ reorganization for the Germans to get some air units to ground strike Lodz.

The game has not progressed beyond the first impulse of Nov/Dec 39. Barring any serious losses in the attempt, all of the end of turn builds will be the same as before for all countries. If I could not make the conquest, I would also consider continuing the game as it stands now, as not to spend anymore time.

If I choose not to reload and make the attempt, I would consider this game to be a "what if" Poland survived into Nov/Dec scenario, and play on.

As I said before this was a misunderstanding of the rules. I want to be able to play out this AAR without the hindrance of a possible handicap because of this in order to play beyond the fall of France where I have stopped my previous games due to my learning the game. I will sleep on it, and look forward to any of your thoughts on this issue.
AndyG1
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by AndyG1 »

This is great, thanks so much for letting us see your real time thought processes! Re Poland - conquest - just continue as is. Makes it even more interesting:).
Anonymous

RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Anonymous »

I'd agree with AndyG1, just play as it is and not worry about Poland. I have had many such mistakes in my play and I just put them down as learning for the next game, but continue with what I'm already playing. I figure no game is perfect and you are playing an "alternate timeline" so differences from events that actually happened are going to occur, both good and bad.

Now saying that, I do find that I save my game many times as I find that bugs/crashes cause me to have to go back and replay. Fortunately I lose only an hour or two but I do sometimes do something different and not follow my exact play during those prior hours.
Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

It has been about four hours since I did the attack on Lodz after breakfast. They took it without losing any units. Since then I have been pondering the situation and mulling over your comments, of which I am in full agreement with the play on its an alternate start scenario. By playing on I am still learning the game, and that this was just another mistake and part of the learning process.

There have been a few things that I have done so far in the game that fall into the same catagory as the Poland issue, and have kept on with the game. Because they were small things, they might have been an inconvenience but did not drasticly alter the the flow of the game.

That being said, it is miscalculation or not understanding the situation that has determined the outcomes of wars throughout history. This to me is the biggest reason to carry on.

Now I need to give equal time for the replay cause. My wife hates it when I look at both sides of an issue when we discuss things. I have mentioned that naval operations and strategy I believe are my weak points in my knowlege of this game. When I started my very first game, I dove right in to the global war all options on and just started playing never having done more than skim through the videos online. With so many naval units, no task force "container units", or space to spread out the counters to sort them out, I just plopped the main CW fleet in Scapa, and the Japanese in Tokyo, and learn as I went along.

Its hard enough getting ones head wrapped around the convoy, supply and oil part of the game, bugs included, but add all of the options on makes it that tougher. On the other hand I believe it has made me better for it. In my previous games I had not gone more than one or two impulses after the fall of France. This gave me enough time with the navies in the west so that I can set them up better than just one big pile in a port. I am still not happy with my naval set ups in the west, but it will get there. In the east, there is no need for real naval action or movement until Japan can annex Indochina, the Dutch are set up, and the Allies begin to trickle units into asia and the Pacific. This is when I can begin to see what will probobly be needed where when the time comes for Japan to declare war.

Now I could just as easily play the scenario provided that starts me out right at that point and learn from that. To me thats the easy way of doing it. I liken it to learning how to build a house by watching it on tv, or reading a how to book. I learned how to do it by carrying lumber for the carpenters and cleaning up the jobsite, before they put tools in my hands and gave me something to do with them that was so simple a five year old could have done it. I had an autoshop teacher in high school who would hand you a part, show you where it went and would walk away. When we would ask what do we do, he would say improvise. I have watched bosses with 30 and 40 years of experience insist that what they were doing was right when I pointed something out to them. Having spent many years having to rebuild something that wasn't done right the first time. Through my own fault or others, we are all guilty of it. I see no difference here.

In short, what happens with the Germans in the begining, controls the events of the whole game. I need to have a reasonable good start for the Germans, so that the Japanese are in a reasonably historic position when they begin fighting the Allies. That is how I want to learn to play the Japanese.

I appologize for rambling on about this, and thank you for your replies and comments.

The game will be go back to the replay. Will explain things from there, but first, real life is demanding my time again for a few hours.
Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

THe decision to reload the game and correct the conquest error has been made. Some added details regarding the decision will be made at the appropraie time, though I will make them short and concise. It will make more sense than my last ramble.

This is the situation at the begining of the impulse after Warsaw was taken, and the Allies finished their next impulse.


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Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

In the movement phase, I was able to use this AAR to duplicate the Japanese moves. Their positions are the same as before.

The Germans move to attack Lodz.

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Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

The attack was a success with no units lost.

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Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

The Germans rebase the air trans. unit west, and the turn does not end.

Before the reset, there was the move by the Nationals making the flanking maneuver, which was moved back before the reload was made. Since I am trying to get the forces in China to where they were when the reload was made, I did not move them in the Allied movement phase. All other National movements were the same.

The turn ends.

The Germans did not get the last impulse in which they only moved about a half dozen or so units toward the French border with the bad weather.

It is curious now that I look at the post made then, that it would be embarassing if the Poles were able to retake Warsaw. How right I could have been, had I moved the Germans differently in their last impulse when the turn ended.

Here is the begining of the Last impulse of the replay turn. The weather had cleared up.



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Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

The US entry roll was only 1 chit this time to the Axis. No actions taken in order to get the Gear up.

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Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

The events posted post reload, were played and the screenshots made before I made the decisions to actually do it. I am taking a few minutes here and there during the day to "catch up" to where I was last night.

So far the variations have been,

1 less impulse at the end of Sep/Oct 39, meaning slightly less German movement west for the battle for France.

A mix up with a 6-3 and a 4-3 Japanese move. Noticed when I went to break down the 4-3 into div. for the upcoming attack on Sian.

Not enough points to give resources to China, due to low chit pull.

Chinese National flanking move. It was pulled back before the reload, and would have been made anyway in an upcoming impulse.

A missed convoy move by the US.

Am currently at the final production phase, and doing things that need to be done around the house, to keep the CIC (wife) happy.
markb50k
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by markb50k »

don't forget the tension requirements for Gear Up. you may find yourself with plenty of US Entry but playing a waiting game due to the fact that you cant select enough options to get the tension up to 11 in each. In other words, you need to pick options to get the necessary tension, and should be doing so throughout the early turns.

My 2 cents
Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

Mark thank you for bringing that up. I saw a post somewhere on the forum about that and your reminder puts it on my todo list in the next day or so. That is to learn it.

Managed to squeeze in the builds while taking a break.

The ground force draws are random, and I know that most of them were not what was originally drawn. I can live with that. The only ones that I remember where the Chinese builds, and they worked out to be the same. I was worried that the Sian militia would not be available again. I am really eager to see how that drama plays out for both sides, hence my using the AAR to do my best to duplicate the moves as close as possible prior to the reload. I know that it will not be exactly the same, but will be following my original basic strategy while catching up to where I was before the reload.

I forgot to add, The US convoy move that I forgot, was a last Allied impulse of SEP/OCT, in order to get my point of oil to save. I somehow had overlooked it throughout the turn. I was one BP short of the original builds, and the submarine did not get laid down for the US this turn.
Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

The units to place on the board are essentially the same with the exception of the French militia builds. This time both were French units. So the transport move will pick up the Algerian inf instead of the Senegalise militia in Senegal.

The Axis won the initiative and gave it to the allies as before. The main difference was with the weather roll. The northern temperate zone has snow instead of storms. This will allow the move that I spent a fair amount of time pondering back on post 135. It will also allow the possibility to do the shuffling of units that I thought about doing also.

This of course will give the Japanese the ability to maneuver into attack positions.

In the west, Everyone will move as they did before, with the CW and French making the same naval moves, with the exception of the French transport.

I am pretty sure that I the game is essentially at the point where I can continue the AAR as once again active, with the just mentioned changes that the weather brings. All in all, it only cost me about an hour or two of actually doing the work to get back to this point. The reload is not exactly the same, but it is where it needs to be.

To be able to see the difference that the weather in China can make At the same point in the game with one set up being able to move and one at a standstill due to rain was worth the effort.

One last note I hope. I knew there was something a bit amiss in the now current forces around Sian. The Japanese had one more impulse to move prior to the reload. In a while when I actually continue the game, I will post screenshots comparing the pre and post reload for your benefit.

Thank you all again for your patience.
Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

Finally.

All of the Allied naval moves have been completed for the first impulse of Nov/Dec 39

We begin again.

As promised, the screenshots for comparison at Sian.

Pre reload forces.

Sorry wrong one.

Third try to find the correct screenshot got it right.

The move into the mountains is now possible since it is now snowing instaed of storms, and the planning of the move before the preload convinced me that the militia will move.


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Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

Post reload forces.

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Banjo
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RE: An advanced beginners AAR, and what i've learned so far and hope to learn

Post by Banjo »

While planning the move I was considering shuffling some of the units around, but that was also not possible due to the weather. I wanted to try to get a 4 strength inf into the hex where the 3-3 is going to move, and place the 3-3 in the open ground hex behind the river.

On second thought, it would be better to have 4 points behind the river and 6 (3*2 dbl defending in mt.), than 3 points behind the river, and 8 (4*2) in the mt. No shuffling of the units.


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