How do I save Douglas?

[Mozo]

Hi All,

Been lurking here for 2 years, playing WITP and waiting like all of you for AE (and like most of you downloaded it around 11:30 EST!). Decided to register yesterday so I could post.

First, thanks SO much to the AE team for putting your heart into an awesome game! A labor of love for sure and it shows!

Second, 3 requests for the future: Please allow me to fill my huge monitor with the AE map, please allow the computer to control parts of the map like in WITP, and please provide a May 1942 start scenario. Not complaining, I understand why for now you couldn't, just some requests for future versions. I'm trying to get some friends involved and I really feel that these features would make it easier to get slightly less geeky people into the game.

Third, some questions (as I've never played this early in the war before).

a) How do I / should I save D-Mac from Bataan? As per real life I'm holding out there now but it won't last of course. Can I use a sub to save just part of the HQ (I'm sure it won't all fit on a single sub) and that will get him to Australia? Or does the HQ respawn if captured/killed?

b) What will happen if I (as the allies) just leave China alone (i.e. not manage it at all)? (I'll at least deal with India/Burma). Will Japan just mop up in a month or so? (they've done a pretty good job already). Is there some minimum thing I could do that wouldn't take a lot of time? I really only want to focus on the other theaters as I used to in WITP. Not sure I will be able to though...

Thanks in advance,

Mozo

[moonraker65]

Ditto the May '42 start. Hoping that Nikademus can do some updated versions of his scenarios that I love playing on WiTP Vanilla. Would also like to see '43 and '44 start scenarios.

[morganbj]

D-Mac can simply walk across the water to OZ.  I've heard that many, many times.
 

[wdolson]

1) USAFFE will not respawn, but when SWPAC is created McArthur will command it.  If you want to change commanders and pay the PP you can get him out of the Philippines before they fall.

2) I assume you're playing the AI.  If you ignore China, it will muddle along.  You will probably loose some ground, but the Japanese probably won't roll up the entire theater.  I'm playing the AI right now and only giving minimal attention to China (I check in about once a week game time).  I'm in late January and there are several battles here and there going on, but the Chinese haven't lost any cities in a couple of weeks.  With Andy's AI being as devious as it is, there may be an offensive coming at some point, but for now the theater is in stasis.

The Japanese can be slowed down in Burma with delaying actions, but the best thing to do IMO is build Calcutta into a fortress and try to slow down the Japanese as much as possible.  The Japanese don't have the manpower to conquer India, so losing India is not terribly likely.  They might push into the fringes though.  And you don't want them conducting air raids deep into India.

Bill