How to build an airfield everywhere

Gary Grigsby’s War in the West 1943-45 is the most ambitious and detailed computer wargame on the Western Front of World War II ever made. Starting with the Summer 1943 invasions of Sicily and Italy and proceeding through the invasions of France and the drive into Germany, War in the West brings you all the Allied campaigns in Western Europe and the capability to re-fight the Western Front according to your plan.

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MrBlizzard
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How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by MrBlizzard »

Probably many of you already know it but I want to share anyway what I've recently discovered.
It's possible to build a new AF virtually in every hex, even if there's not a "dot" village.
You just have to airdrop some supplies in the hex. This action creates a temporary depot in the hex.
Then you can create a new AF in the hex expending one AP.
Nice! [8D]


Edit: I didn't check in the manual, is it not gamey, isn't it?

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Hghx-0
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RE: How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by Hghx-0 »

I noticed this too, will it remain the next turn though?
I think it's not gamey, in real life airfield wasn't a thing that needed a city location to be constructed. Even in the game some airfields are by their own, outside of city.
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Joel Billings
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RE: How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by Joel Billings »

In WitE2 we've added the ability to create an airfield in any hex as long as it's not a mountain hex (although it does cost an AP point). So it's not really gamey if you've figured out a way to do it in WitW (although I suggest you tell your opponent about it when you start your game).
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RE: How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by MrBlizzard »

Then it seems I'm just a little ahead of my time [:D]
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RE: How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by LiquidSky »



For the Germans...it is probably irrelevant. I would only build up airfields on cities that have or will have flak.

The allies though....I find it hard to see it being something terribly abused. There are a lot of perfectly good named locations to build airfields on..and you do get a lot of free level 2 airfields from invasions. (which, I might add..can be done on friendly hexes)

I find that once I am on the continent....and I have pushed beyond my British and invasion airfields....I don't have a lot of need.

As for Italy..well..I suppose there could be a couple built. But I would also like to have them near a freight source...even better if they are on a depot. Also my engineers are usually quite occupied repairing rail yards, and ports. And even rail lines.

It's funny...all this time and it never occurred to me to try this. But then I would probably never drop air freight on a hex that wasn't an airfield. It is not worth the loss. 8k worth of freight is much better then 4k worth. Even if it is delayed until the logistics step for delivery to a unit.
“My logisticians are a humorless lot … they know if my campaign fails, they are the first ones I will slay.” – Alexander the Great
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RE: How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by Hghx-0 »

ORIGINAL: LiquidSky



For the Germans...it is probably irrelevant. I would only build up airfields on cities that have or will have flak.

The allies though....I find it hard to see it being something terribly abused. There are a lot of perfectly good named locations to build airfields on..and you do get a lot of free level 2 airfields from invasions. (which, I might add..can be done on friendly hexes)

I find that once I am on the continent....and I have pushed beyond my British and invasion airfields....I don't have a lot of need.

As for Italy..well..I suppose there could be a couple built. But I would also like to have them near a freight source...even better if they are on a depot. Also my engineers are usually quite occupied repairing rail yards, and ports. And even rail lines.

It's funny...all this time and it never occurred to me to try this. But then I would probably never drop air freight on a hex that wasn't an airfield. It is not worth the loss. 8k worth of freight is much better then 4k worth. Even if it is delayed until the logistics step for delivery to a unit.

The delivery in logistical phase will require trucks, that usually are in low supply for germans, additional attrition isn't something that german player wants, also in such a situation allied player can establish an interdiction level and additionally increase the attrition and, therefore, the amount of freight lost during movement.

I prefer dropping freight directly on units if i can at least supply a half of their demand.
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RE: How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by cfulbright »

As for Italy..well..I suppose there could be a couple built. But I would also like to have them near a freight source...even better if they are on a depot. Also my engineers are usually quite occupied repairing rail yards, and ports. And even rail lines.

I can see doing this in the empty hex between Termoli and Lesina on the Adriatic coast north of Foggia. I station my P-38J's in airbases in those two towns, so now can add a third base for them.

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RE: How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by MrBlizzard »

ORIGINAL: LiquidSky



For the Germans...it is probably irrelevant. I would only build up airfields on cities that have or will have flak.

The allies though....I find it hard to see it being something terribly abused. There are a lot of perfectly good named locations to build airfields on..and you do get a lot of free level 2 airfields from invasions. (which, I might add..can be done on friendly hexes)

I find that once I am on the continent....and I have pushed beyond my British and invasion airfields....I don't have a lot of need.

As for Italy..well..I suppose there could be a couple built. But I would also like to have them near a freight source...even better if they are on a depot. Also my engineers are usually quite occupied repairing rail yards, and ports. And even rail lines.

It's funny...all this time and it never occurred to me to try this. But then I would probably never drop air freight on a hex that wasn't an airfield. It is not worth the loss. 8k worth of freight is much better then 4k worth. Even if it is delayed until the logistics step for delivery to a unit.

In Torch to Tunisia campaign I have often found that frontline Axis troops don't receive supplies/ammo/fuel for more turns. I don't know if it depends of broken rail (that never get repaired), bad terrain, bad dice rolls or all of them.
The AF near the frontline are few so I became used to airdrop freight directly to units and I discovered this feature.
For how many hex supplies flow from AFs to units? I noticed that supplies airdropped to AFs sometimes go instantly to units and sometimes not. In the latter case I assumed they were lost, instead are they moving next turn?
Thanks
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RE: How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by Hghx-0 »

ORIGINAL: MrBlizzard

ORIGINAL: LiquidSky



For the Germans...it is probably irrelevant. I would only build up airfields on cities that have or will have flak.

The allies though....I find it hard to see it being something terribly abused. There are a lot of perfectly good named locations to build airfields on..and you do get a lot of free level 2 airfields from invasions. (which, I might add..can be done on friendly hexes)

I find that once I am on the continent....and I have pushed beyond my British and invasion airfields....I don't have a lot of need.

As for Italy..well..I suppose there could be a couple built. But I would also like to have them near a freight source...even better if they are on a depot. Also my engineers are usually quite occupied repairing rail yards, and ports. And even rail lines.

It's funny...all this time and it never occurred to me to try this. But then I would probably never drop air freight on a hex that wasn't an airfield. It is not worth the loss. 8k worth of freight is much better then 4k worth. Even if it is delayed until the logistics step for delivery to a unit.

In Torch to Tunisia campaign I have often found that frontline Axis troops don't receive supplies/ammo/fuel for more turns. I don't know if it depends of broken rail (that never get repaired), bad terrain, bad dice rolls or all of them.
The AF near the frontline are few so I became used to airdrop freight directly to units and I discovered this feature.
For how many hex supplies flow from AFs to units? I noticed that supplies airdropped to AFs sometimes go instantly to units and sometimes not. In the latter case I assumed they were lost, instead are they moving next turn?
Thanks

Airdropped supply is distributed among units at a range of 1 from drop hex. So you can supply adjacent to the AF units by air.

I'm also playing Torch To Tunisia, depots in Tunisia are pretty far from my units, weather isn't too good either, but using transport planes really help the situation, I can afford supplying the whole 5th Panzer Army by air, and this is considering the fact that the whole army isn't really involved in the fight, so i need to take care only of the half of it.
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RE: How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by MrBlizzard »

Yeah it seems it rains more in Tunisia than in central Europe! [:D]
Do you have too the problem that broken railways are not repaired in this scenery?
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RE: How to build an airfield everywhere

Post by Hghx-0 »

ORIGINAL: MrBlizzard

Yeah it seems it rains more in Tunisia than in central Europe! [:D]
Do you have too the problem that broken railways are not repaired in this scenery?
Yes, same problem, although i have 3-4 battalions attached to the 5th PA, the HQ because of an unknown reason doesn't send them to repair the railways.
Air deliveries really help! And operational losses are low, I lost only 18 ju 52s in 4 month flying almost every turn.
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