5th Free UK Fighter - Revisited

[rkr1958]

I'd like to take a moment to readdress the 5th free UK fighter that spawns in Britain. Below is a screen cap from a hotseat game that I was playing in where I tried to execute Sea Lion in May 1940. I played my standard allied strategy and played a fairly standard axis strategy in France (with some research differences and attack direction). I'm wondering if this 5th extra fighter is really necessary to prevent a 1940 Sea Lion?

One very important thing that I discovered is that RN DD's wreak havoc on German subs that block, or try to block, the English Channel. And maybe I don't know how to execute a successful Sea Lion; but my allied self is kicking the butt of my axis self using my standard allied strategy.

So is this 5th free UK fighter really necessary? Does it tip the balance too much in favor of the allies.

Note that the axis air consists of 4 German & 1 Italian fighters, 3 German & 1 Italian TAC and 1 German SAC now against 3 RAF + 1 French fighter, 1 RN CV & 1 RAF SAC. Not only is the German air getting beat up so is the German navy.

I admit that I'm not very accomplished at Sea Lion; however, I just don't see a 1940 Sea Lion as a big threat.

[Peter Stauffenberg]

I noticed you attacked before France has surrendered and then you also need to deal with the French fighter.

I don't think the Polish Air Force will make such a big difference. It will normally start at 4 steps and that means quite a bit of PP's are needed to build it up to full strength. Using it at low strength means it can be destroyed and that's too dangerous.

The British fighter in Egypt is weaker and if the Axis put pressure there then even more PP's must be used to get it to full strength.

I think that if the Axis want to do Sealion in 1940 they need to prepare for it by building more of what they need to succeed like having 4 fighter and tac bombers instead of just 3. They have enough land units from the 1939 start forces.

You also need to time when you want to do Sealion. You can attack early to get the extra surprise, but then the French can help Britain. That would make Paris fall faster, though. I think that Sealion has the best chance to succeed if it's done soon after an early fall of France. If France falls after June 1940 then I think Sealion would be too risky.

So I think we can't conclude until experts in Sealion like Supermax gets a try and see if they can still do it. I feel that succeeding with Sealion should be a sign of an expert player and not something that average Joe can accomplish against a capable opponent. It's the same as taking Moscow or Leningrad in 1941. If you can do it then you're a very good player or your opponent is below average.

In GS v2.01 up to a few versions ago then Sealion was something that most players could do. Some just spent more time than others.

If the extra British fighter means that not even Supermax can do a Sealion THEN I think we have done too much and could change things back. At the moment I don't know how hard it is. In your game I see several reasons for Sealion to struggle that have nothing to do with the Polish Air Force.

[rkr1958]

In your game I see several reasons for Sealion to struggle that have nothing to do with the Polish Air Force.

Yeah ... I'm not very good at Sealion am I'm. I can't even pull it off in hotseat. Or maybe I just playing a really good defensive game for the allies.

Seriously though, I did learn that RN DD's sweeping the channel will devastate any German u-boats trying to block it!

[Peter Stauffenberg]

You only use the subs to delay the RN units from killing the German surface ships giving supply to the invasion force. If you have 2 subs in the choke point in the English channel then it will take several turns to clear.

It depends on where you invade. I think the easiest place to invade is near Plymouth or Southampton. Then you can have subs blocking both the west and east part of the English channel. Luftwaffe air units can easily support the invasion from French airfields.

One of the big problems with an early landing in England is that you haven't captured the French coastal airfields yet and that means the invasion force might have to fight the British units without airstrikes (except from the strategic bomber).

I think invading England has the best chance to succeed if you can bombard the British mech and corps units so they can't kill German units at the beachheads.

The Germans don't actually need air superiority to beat the British. They need air parity so all German bombers can hit their targets without being intercepted. That means the bombers will stay healthy for quite some time.

The Germans can easily have 3 fighters + 1 Italian fighter, 3 tac bombers, 1 strat bomber + 1 Italian tac bomber at the start of Sealion. Britain will have 3 fighters + 1 CV. That means fighters can force the British air units to intercept and that means all bombers will hit home.

I usually use fighters to target coastal garrisons in Britain so the units use efficiency in addition to the intended dogfight.

[rkr1958]

You only use the subs to delay the RN units from killing the German surface ships giving supply to the invasion force. If you have 2 subs in the choke point in the English channel then it will take several turns to clear.

I did a couple of turns before. One DD sweep inflicted 6-steps of losses on the first and the second 5-steps. I was really surprised by the damage suffered by the two flotillas guarding the choke point.

It depends on where you invade. I think the easiest place to invade is near Plymouth or Southampton. Then you can have subs blocking both the west and east part of the English channel. Luftwaffe air units can easily support the invasion from French airfields.

One of the big problems with an early landing in England is that you haven't captured the French coastal airfields yet and that means the invasion force might have to fight the British units without airstrikes (except from the strategic bomber).

I think invading England has the best chance to succeed if you can bombard the British mech and corps units so they can't kill German units at the beachheads.

The Germans don't actually need air superiority to beat the British. They need air parity so all German bombers can hit their targets without being intercepted. That means the bombers will stay healthy for quite some time.

The Germans can easily have 3 fighters + 1 Italian fighter, 3 tac bombers, 1 strat bomber + 1 Italian tac bomber at the start of Sealion. Britain will have 3 fighters + 1 CV. That means fighters can force the British air units to intercept and that means all bombers will hit home.

I usually use fighters to target coastal garrisons in Britain so the units use efficiency in addition to the intended dogfight.

I wanted to see if I could sneak it in while the allies were involved in France. That's why I was playing hotseat. Hey ... I did uncover a lingering bug (see viewtopic.php?p=290948#290948 ) and had some fun to boot. So it wasn't a total flop.

And, the good news is that my allied defense counters that strategy. That is, no early 1940 Sea Lion! Well at least by me against me.