Port blockades Malta and Gibraltar

[PanzerMike]

With the new rules for port blockade it is fairly easy (against the AI) to starve the garrisons of Malta and Gibraltar.
There is a difference though between the two. When the Malta garrison dissolves due to lack of supply, Malta is still UK territory. You need to invade to actually take Malta.

Not so with Gibraltar. When the Gibraltar garisson has starved to death, the Gibraltar hex automatically belongs to Germany. You only have to do a naval transport move to drop a land unit in Gibraltar. No invasion needed. This makes taking Gibraltar against the AI very easy indeed.

I suggest that at least the Gibraltar hex does NOT automatically go to Germany after starving the UK unit there, thus still having the need to invade the (now empty) UK Gibraltar hex.

I also added an extra AI order in my own game to do a Small Naval Patrol in hex 128,21 next to Gibraltar to force the AI to keep patrolling the area and station a naval unit in Gibraltar to prevent the blockade. So far in my AI vs AI test game, the AI does tend to adhere to that new AI patrol order and station a DD group in Gibraltar.

[ncc1701e]

I suggest that at least the Gibraltar hex does NOT automatically go to Germany after starving the UK unit there, thus still having the need to invade the (now empty) UK Gibraltar hex.

+1

[AlvaroSousa]

I'll take a look.

[PanzerMike]

Here is the turn on which the Malta garrison dissolved due to my blockade in Sep 1940. Malta remains UK territory though, necessitating an airdrop or invasion to take it.

Not so with Gibraltar, after the garrison is starved the territory flips to Germany.

Also, in my mod I added a Medium Naval Patrol order for the AI in hex 128,21. In my playtest so far (I am in Sep 1940) it forces the AI to station a fleet in Gibraltar starting in 1940. This way the blockade is of Gibraltar will prove much more difficult is the idea. Currently taking Gibraltar against the AI is like taking candy from a baby.

Update: I am now in 1941 playing Axis vs AI and the AI keeps a naval unit in Gibraltar all the time so far. So no more cheesy starving the UK garrison there. Might I humbly suggest to do this in the vanilla scenario as well, Alvaro?

[PanzerMike]

Just to make sure you know what is happening: once the garrison has starved to death, it suffices to move a naval unit into the beach hex to flip control of Gibraltar to Germany (even though it is an Italian naval unit that does the trick...).

[AlvaroSousa]

Mmmm... Did you invade the beach?

[PanzerMike]

Nope. In the picture it is a submarine. Just occupy the beach hex and presto, Gibraltar is German and simply transport a crappy Italian corps to it . What a trick