The Aleutian Crisis Scenario Playing Tips

This is a very large map but the number of units is manageable and there is provision at one point to avoid the need to sail from one end of the map to the other.  I hope that will avoid at least some tedious boredom.

However, the size of the map did take on a life of its own and produced what are really two scenarios, back to back.  There is a Part 1 (to be exact, a choice of 1A or 1B) which at some point transitions into Part 2.  That is why the scenario is a total of 75 turns but that does not mean you will necessarily will play 75 turns.  The choice of 1A versus 1B is provided to cut short the first part in order to get to the second and you don't have to play to scenario-end to win.

With a few exceptions, all units are highly experienced at this stage of the war.  I figure that roughly balances out so that combating units have the same advantages and disadvantages versus each other as they would if they started with no experience.  It's just a nod to realism, that's all.  What it does do is make you think about the tradeoff of normal versus elite repair; normal to preserve resources, elite to preserve experience.

Supply is omitted or arranged deliberately so that it adds a degree of difficulty in Part 1 and so that in Part 2 it is not so simple as to land a unit to cut across supply lines and thus disable the enemy without firing a shot.  In this case, it's a design decision.  Supply is a great feature of Order of Battle and normally I would want it to figure in the scenario but in this case I wanted battles to go in certain ways and providing friendly supply ships (Part 1) and protecting enemy supply lines (Party 2) would require more units in the scenario and more AI thinking.

A key factor in scenario victory is whether you keep intact in Part 1 enough of your forces in order to handle the enemy in Part 2.  There is no unit purchasing although dead units can be resurrected.  You must win with the units given to you at the start of the scenario.  If you take good care of your units in Part 1, are careful not to lose many, and do a good job of reinforcing them when you can (normal or elite repair is up to you), you should be able to handle the enemy in Part 2.

As always, pay close attention to popup messages because you only see them once.  Pay particular attention to SENTENCES IN ALL CAPITALS.  Those are very important instructions.  In general, general, follow your orders!

When it's your turn, definitely use the "next unit" arrow to avoid overlooking units.  However, when you are taken to an area, move all the units in that area so that you don't need to be scanning back and forth over the map as much.  If you prefer, use CTRL+click to set long distance movement, particularly for the fleets. 

Launch both airplanes from a hangar while you have it in focus to avoid needing to come back to it later in the turn.  Put units to sleep if they are where you want them and are not going to be engaged for several turns.  Don't forget them, however!

Two other things that may help move the game along during AI play are to move the AI Animation Speed and Map Scroll Speed to higher settings in Preferences and Controls options.  If the video play is choppy in general, consider reducing Render, Effects, and Lighting Quality in Performance options.

Consider playing with Unit Accenting Glow turned on.  It may be a bit difficult to see some units against the background.

A note about program crashes:  OOB can crash sometimes; we all know this.  It is less frequent than it used to be, but it still happens.  This scenario may crash, but not very often despite its size.  If it does crash, just restart the game and reload the Auto Save.  Every once in a while, it may be a good idea to save the game, exit to desktop, and restart it as a precaution.

NOTE: The enemy commanders are fictional but Admiral Robert Theobald and General Benjamin Talley were real U.S. commanders in Alaska at some points during the war.  A bit of biographical information is included in the information folder; Theobald's story is especially interesting.  Of course, my portrayal of their words and actions in this scenario is purely fictional.


*** SPOILER ALERT ***  STOP READING HERE UNLESS YOU WANT TO LEARN THINGS THAT MAY SPOIL YOUR ENJOYMENT OF THIS SCENARIO.


So here is where I can start saying the words "Japanese" and "Soviets" when referring to Parts 1 and 2 respectively.  The whole point of Part 1 is that the U.S. has been "caught with our pants down" (a quote fictionally attributed to President Harry S. Truman in the scenario) in allowing the rogue Japanese to get a strong grip on the Aleutian Islands.  

While U.S. forces are dealing with the Japanese, trouble is brewing in the U.S.S.R.  Just as the Japanese are defeated, (ex-)Soviets invade the Alaskan mainland in Part 2, intent on capturing the city of Anchorage.  You will find out why as you go along.

The most obvious playing tip is that you should try not to lose any units against the Japanese because you are going to need them badly against the Soviets.  Moreover, what condition they are in after Part 1 affects how well you do in Part 2.

The choice between Part 1A and Part 1B is whether to take a shortcut in defeating the Japanese or battle it out, island by island.  Both Parts 1A and 1B involve a significant air battle; there's no way around that because it's necessary to both.  

If you do choose to battle it out, yes, you have no supply ships!  That is not an oversight.  Instead, you must rely on your warships to provide supply.  Your marines will be on islands only a short while anyway, and the warships provide the means for marines to re-embark on their transports and move on.  Don't forget that landing craft can fight from the water in this scenario, so it may not be necessary to land marines in every instance.

When Part 1 is done, there is a transition to Part 2.  Your units are undeployed and the action shifts to the Alaskan mainland.  Read the popup messages to know what is going on and what to do.  Obviously, the Japanese are done for and now your enemy are the Soviets trying to take Anchorage.  Unless you played very badly in Part 1, you will stop and defeat the enemy in Part 2.

You are given latitude as to where to redeploy your naval and air units.  Think carefully, because once they are placed, it can be a long sail/flight to where you wished you had put them!  The marines will show up when the going gets bad.

Look, I didn't feel the need to outright tell you to go after Soviet supply ships the same way that I did for the Japanese supply ships.  Destroying the Soviet supply ships will not affect army supply in this case but it will cut off Soviet resource income just as it did to the Japanese.

Canadian troops are introduced late in the scenario and you may wonder why I did not give them to human control (they are AI allies instead).  The answer is, because I did not want to!  You have enough to do at that point.  Let them do their thing.

Yes, there can be a traffic jam in and around Anchorage if you don't follow orders and move fast enough.  If so, that's your fault, so I left it in.  It's actually a neat touch, I think; sort of what would happen in real life with bad logistical management.

Two other neat touches - at least they are intended to be neat - are the search and chase for each defeated enemy commander.  Some players may think this is overkill that adds unnecessarily to scenario length and other players may think it's fun.  You decide.

So it's a balanced approach:  Navy and air must do their jobs while the army gets into position to blunt the Soviet attack and the marines who have survived the Japanese campaign finally arrive at some point to save Anchorage.