Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

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nerdymidgetkid
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Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by nerdymidgetkid »

EPISODE 1: SO MUCH FOR SANDBOX...

Okay, so this is my second proper playthrough of the game. Once again, I’m recording it for AAR use. Fingers crossed, I’ll have learned from the mistakes of last time and will be able to get a proper game going. If not, this will be kept for me to laugh at when I’m older and wiser.
Starting settings were: Every difficulty besides diplomacy: easy, world volatility medium and nuclear penalties low. I call this the “noob configuration—” gimme a break guys, I AM a noob after all.
***
Before un-pausing, I did a number of things. First off was the correction of a grave error: the lack of land forces in Korea last time, which lead to my pathetic fail in the Korean war and abandonment of the game. With all initiative settings at 0 besides naval, I hoped that I could avoid having all my stuff auto-undeployed (yes war minister, I’m looking at you.)
Anyway, most of the land forces in Japan were dispatched to protect Seoul, as I knew war with the North wouldn’t be far off.
Meanwhile, I targeted petroleum self sufficiency as my first economic goal, due to its importance to military operations.
Predictably, the first event in the so-called “sandbox” mode was this:
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I wasn't too interested—I knew that the French could handle themselves—so meanwhile I continued to make sure my military was properly organized. All my carriers were set to 0 initiative, with all the currently deployed other ships set to escort them. One of the new battlegroups was deployed on the West coast and sent to south-east Asia. This one’s assignment would be to pick up several “corsair” tactical bombers from an airbase on one of the Japanese islands. It would then sit off the coast of North Korea.
Within a few months preparations for conflict in Korea were in full swing. Having heeded the advice of several forum posts, I was mobilizing paratroopers from across the US. Four hunter-killer submarines were sent from the West Coast to Japan, where they would provide a shield against possible enemy amphibious operations. By mid 1950, it was clear that the North Koreans were prepping their forces as well.
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The Korean war soon broke out in earnest, with a vicious onslaught by the North Korean army. US ground troops held the line while the first air operations were carried out—these weren't too successful, however, as though I had established air superiority within a matter of days, enemy AA batteries had the front lines well covered.
By the end of June, my position was precarious. A hole had been opened in the enemy line, on the eastern side of the country, with South Korean troops now fairly deep into enemy territory. However, without proper reinforcements, they wouldn’t be able to do much.
Meanwhile, both my troops and the enemy ones had suffered very severe casualties on the front lines.
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By the 3rd of July, my front lines were in tatters—fortunately, so too were the enemy’s. Much of the North Korean force had been forced to retreat to their capital for repairs, while the US troops were still holding their lines despite taking a very severe hammering. Despite my horrendous losses, the ongoing battle had pinned what remained of North Korean army in place, allowing the South Koreans to exploit their beachhead in the East, moving further mechanized infantry divisions into enemy territory.
On the 4th of July, I initiated a raid code-named “Operation Firecracker” (owing to its purely coincidental date) with my new B-36 “Peacemaker” bombers being sent from their base in Japan to Pyongyang, the North Korean capital. The original plan was to pound the city’s industrial buildings to dust in the hopes of paralysing the country’s infrastructure, but before a second raid could be carried out on the following day I discovered that the second deployment of paratroopers which I’d brought over from the US (the first, smaller contingent had been destroyed in an overly audacious raid some weeks ago) had also arrived in Japan. With all the resistance in the city gone, the 6,000 paratroopers were dropped into the city. Facing only one garrison unit, they took it within a day.
Image
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The remainder of the enemy’s front line was quickly surrounded by North Korean troops. Meanwhile, the Essex Class carrier USS Avenger had finally arrived along with her task force and compliment of bombers.
Operation firecracker was continued against the new Northern Capital, Ch’ongjin, on the 9th, while new reinforcements arrived from Japan in order to intercept a large contingent of armored divisions which were moving to retake Pyongyang. I had drained Japan’s defences almost dry for this war, but now I had my enemy on the run.
On the 11th, yet another paratrooper contingent, this time comprising of 2,500 men, airdropped into the new capital. The assault failed however, forcing me to bring up a larger, mechanized task force.
After two more bombing raids and a lot of problems with bringing up my forces (presumably because of supply problems) the capital fell on the 31st of July. My task force took little damage, thanks to the damage which my paratroopers had already done to the city’s defences. Perhaps fittingly, North Vietnam had fallen to the French on the same day.
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I knew that annexing them would likely infuriate the Russians, but I wasn’t about to simply leave this front unattended—therefore, North Korea became the newest colony of the USA on August 1, 1950.
All in all, the war had been a resounding success for the US military—particularly evidenced by my total failure in my previous attempt at it. Losses had been heavy, especially in the infantry corps—as best I could tell, 10,000 of the original 15,000 men deployed on the front lines had perished, but the war had taught me a lot about combat in the game. Something tells me that knowledge is going to be needed later on...
Last edited by nerdymidgetkid on Apr 24 2014, edited 1 time in total.
nerdymidgetkid
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by nerdymidgetkid »

NOTE: Sorry for the massive images guys--imgur just does it that way. I guess it breaks up the text quite well, and at least the quality is good. :D
nerdymidgetkid
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by nerdymidgetkid »

EPISODE 2: THE LOOMING DRAGON

I soon paid for my leniency with a very worrying development: an alliance between North Korea and China. Soon enough, there were Chinese troops in North Korea.
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My first thought at this moment was: 'wait a second, since when can colonies make allies? WITHOUT my permission?' My second was 'oh dear.' I'd been lucky to not be faced with Chinese forces in the war, but with the North Korean government looking ready for revolt and the Chinese causus Belli at high, it looked as if a new conflict was brewing, and I panicked. Perhaps it can be said that I slightly overcompensated with my counter-deployment. By December, the pieces were moving into place. If the naval personnel of the two carrier battle groups are included, the US now had around 40,000 troops stationed in Korea. (Compared to the 15,000 present at the beginning of the Korean war.) Some other notable events include: the election of a Socialist leader in Guatemala and the rise of a dictator in Hati--both of these looked like precursors to the countries beginning to lean towards the USSR.

Meanwhile, my trend for coincidental dates continued, as the research on “nuclear missile warheads” was completed on Christmas day, 1950. Presents for everyone!
To even out the karma, I also began construction on a space center (in Florida, naturally) the same day. Besides historical accuracy, the roleplayer in me decided that it would be best to have it close to an equatorial orbit.
The new year began with more bad news as Eritrea, a nation which had just seceded from the British Empire, fell into Soviet alignment. However, they were promptly invaded by Ethiopia. I still condemned the war as an act of aggression, but I wasn't about to do anything to stop it. Soon enough, the small country had fallen to Ethiopia's...relative...might.

In light of the amount of trouble I was in, my military development was in full swing, both in terms of research and manufacturing. If there was one arena in which I could outstrip the Chinese, it was tech...

May 3, 1951
In light of rising tensions after the colonization of North Korea, the President has ordered the Joint Chiefs of Staff to each provide him with a report pertaining to their sector of the military—its development, current deployments in South East Asia, and how it stands up against the Communist menace...



Mr. President,
Below is what I hope you will find an adequate summary of the United States army and its operations in relation to the current situation in Southeast Asia, as well as a brief report regarding the army’s current status.
At present, we have around 30,000 men on station in Korea, mainly based within the North. We have ensured that this force outnumbers the Chinese forces in the region by a considerable margin, and should be able to drive them back if any attempt were made to quickly retake the North. However, this does not mean that we could successfully hold out against a larger scale assault by the full force of the Chinese army with this number of troops. We have ensured that the composition of our force in the region is well—rounded and should be able to go on the offensive should the appropriate situation arise.
Unfortunately, it is impossible to draw many conclusions about the quality, composition and size of the Chinese military with our current level of intelligence. It is, however, reasonable to assume that the quality of their units will be similar to that of the North Koreans, if not slightly greater. It is therefore reasonable to assume that our units and theirs are matched fairly evenly, as it is an unfortunate truth that of all the sectors of the military, the army possesses the least advanced technology.
Furthermore, due to the large population at Mao’s disposal, it is unlikely that we will possess the numbers advantage that we did in the last war—though please note that such an advantage could likely be achieved if a much greater portion of the army were to be deployed in this region.
As I have stated earlier, the army cannot be as easily modernised as the other sectors. We are, however, currently pursuing a next-generation tank design—the TL-2 “Raptor.” In our current situation, the necessity of heavily utilizing this design cannot be overstated, as it would likely provide us with a clear technological advantage over Mao’s forces.

___________
Mr. President,
Below is the report you requested. As you specified, it is as brief as I could make it.
Of all the sectors of the military, the air force has shown the most promise in recent years. Our involvement in the war with Korea was undoubtedly the most important component in our success, and air force involvement is likely to be even more critical in a possible conflict with China.
Currently, it is impossible to do anything more than guess at the capability of this enemy, though it is safe to assume that it is inferior to ours. It can likely be concluded that their technology when it comes to aircraft will be similar to that of the North Koreans, though their air force will likely be larger than the pitiful few North Korean squadrons which we encountered in our previous war.
Judging by our current deployments in the region, I am confident that our land based aircraft, combined with those operating out of our carriers, will be able to establish air superiority over the country. However, without knowledge of the size of China’s land force, I cannot accurately say whether the current number of Shooting Star tactical bombers stationed in the region will be enough to bring us victory.
I am, however, more confident in the power of the B-36 Peacekeeper bombers currently stationed in Japan. While Operation firecracker and its subsequent raids were short and largely inconsequential, they did showcase the potential damage these new strategic bombers can inflict. In a war with China, it is likely, though regrettable, that we would be forced to repeat the tactics used in the World War and conduct numerous raids against enemy cities in order to cripple their infrastructure.
Please note, however, that our capabilities are developing rapidly, and we have several new designs on the drawing board. The F-4 Phantom interceptor and its bomber variant, the F-4C Phantom, are likely to be introduced soon and promise to be vastly superior to their existing counterparts. Once these new aircraft can be introduced to the region, our prospects in a possible war will increase greatly. Already in production is our new jet engine strategic bomber, the B-52 Stratofortress, but this particular aircraft is more of a specialized nuclear bomber and will likely have less importance in a conflict with China, unless the Soviet Union were to become involved.

___________
Mr. President,
As you will know, the US Navy performed a more minor role in the recent conflict in Korea. It is likely that, in the event of a war with China, our role will be similarly small. Currently, most of our attention is focused on the Atlantic, with only our two carrier battlegroups along with a very small number of other vessels operating in the region.
Having said that, several key points must be observed about this situation. I will detail them briefly.
-Carrier Operations: In establishing air superiority over China—which would be, perhaps, our most vital objective at the outbreak of war—our carriers are likely to be important in providing a mobile base for our airborne units which can be relocated to wherever their presence is needed. This necessity is likely to be even more apparent once the planned F-4 Phantoms are introduced, as they have a much shorter range than our current Banshee fighters and will therefore rely on the mobility of a carrier much more heavily. From what I do know about the Chinese navy—and I must stress that is not much—they do not pose a significant threat to our carrier battle groups in the area. However, I do recommend that the protection of these carriers be increased, as their safety is of paramount importance.
-Controlling Coastal Waters: If we become involved in a war with China, it is possible that Taiwan could become involved. As such, I recommend that a small task force be dispatched to the area in order to provide security here. I would also recommend that further ships move to patrol the waters further North, in order to provide security for amphibious operations, should they be needed.
-Shore Bombardment: While the navy will likely not be able to interfere much in ground operations, there are some targets such as Shanghai, that the navy may be able to assist in neutralizing, should the need arise. Owing to our certain naval dominance over the Chinese, this is an advantage that we should not fail to exploit. I would therefore recommend the deployment of at least one battleship to the theatre, along with the appropriate escorts.


WOW, that was long-winded, but I couldn’t resist a bit of RPing and I figured I needed to spice this post up a bit.
So, I continued to pile on the troops. By July, a year after the Korean war, the likelihood of a Chinese attack had fallen to Medium. Perhaps the whole affair would merely turn into another Cold War scare.
However, I wasn’t about to be lulled into a false sense of security. In accordance with my decision to project naval dominance in the theatre, around a third of the massive fleet stationed in Hawaii was deployed and sent in close to Chinese waters. Practically, it would ensure the complete security of naval operations in the area if conflict broke out without warning. This was especially important, because Japan was now virtually undefended, and lightning attacks by enemy forces could easily secure this vital stronghold. However, it was also meant to send a clear message to the Chinese, if the AI can read such messages. (If not, just consider it roleplaying.)
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Meanwhile, the CIA got their first chance to get in on the action with something I dubbed “Operation Dragon’s Eye.” The intent was to observe Chinese deployments near Korea. The results were less than promising:
Image
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The Chinese had matched my deployments almost completely evenly. Mercifully, Dragon’s eye did not reveal a Soviet presence in the area.
All the while, offers had been flooding in from my friends in Europe, trading military reserve units for sorely needed cash. Most of them were accepted—so long as they didn't involve cavalry or propeller aircraft.
I had big plans for these allies. As soon as America could be made wholly self-sufficient, I intended to start pumping the surpluses in to where they were needed. Additionally, with many of my new high tech units about to come into play, I was preparing to gradually export the older (but still very advanced, by the standards of the European countries) Banshees and Thunderjets to my trusted allies, which would hopefully secure their air supremacy.
However, in the midst of the constant offers to trade (as it went, in most cases the exchange would fail because they didn’t actually have what they were offering...) two much more significant offers arrived on the same day: alliances with Greece and Turkey. US army + Spartan Warriors = WIN!

And yet more good news: my new space center was officially finished! Not that I could use it, as I didn't have the necessary tech for a satellite launch.
But I guess the game decided that the universe needed to re-balance itself, as China developed early aircraft carrier tech shortly thereafter.

So, I’m ending this Episode on the 30th of December, 1951. All in all, it’s been a good game year, and I look forward to continuing this playthrough.
Thumboy
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by Thumboy »

This is nice :) is this the one we were discussing on another thread?
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by GIJoe597 »

Very good, although I do prefer the large pics, I know from my own past AARs it annoys some :)
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by GreenGoblin »

GIJoe597 wrote:Very good, although I do prefer the large pics, I know from my own past AARs it annoys some :)
Yes, I like the bigger pictures too.
nerdymidgetkid
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by nerdymidgetkid »

GIJoe597 wrote:Very good, although I do prefer the large pics, I know from my own past AARs it annoys some :)
Okay, well with 2 for and 0 against...bigger pics it is!
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by nerdymidgetkid »

Thumboy wrote:This is nice :) is this the one we were discussing on another thread?
Indeed it is. :) Well, I did not think in any way that there'd actually be replies to this thing, so thanks, guys! I'll prioritize the continuation of the series--it shouldn't be too long before the next post comes along. I'm pretty much in out of my depth now--I've reached my second generation of jet aircraft now (and it's 1952...seems legit...) and I'm trying to offload all those puny little first gen ones.
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by Thumboy »

nerdymidgetkid wrote:
Thumboy wrote:This is nice :) is this the one we were discussing on another thread?
Indeed it is. :) Well, I did not think in any way that there'd actually be replies to this thing, so thanks, guys! I'll prioritize the continuation of the series--it shouldn't be too long before the next post comes along. I'm pretty much in out of my depth now--I've reached my second generation of jet aircraft now (and it's 1952...seems legit...) and I'm trying to offload all those puny little first gen ones.
Well I can't wait for more :)
nerdymidgetkid
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by nerdymidgetkid »

EPISODE 3: ECONOMIC BOOM

The new year began with some uncharacteristically good news, as on January 12th a UN report stated that a total of five nations had moved from USSR aligned to USSR leaning, while only one moved from non-aligned to USSR leaning. On January 23rd, the report said Iraq had joined that club. I didn’t know what was causing the shift away from Stalin—really didn’t care. Here is the domino effect in action, and for once America wasn’t on the receiving end.

And, as news spread across Europe of how easy I was to rip off, the diplomatic request continued to flood in. A particularly interesting case was when Sweden sold me a float plane unit for $11 M. Why did I spend 11 million dollars of a floatplane squadron, you ask? I think the real question is ‘why wouldn’t I?’

In late February, the Modernization of the United States Air Force in Asia Act (MUSAFAA, for short) act was signed. This placed all airborne units belonging to “Generation 0” (the term used by the USAF for aircraft designs which were created before or during WWII and are no longer in production, which I just made up) were to be sent into
the reserves, pending sale to countries that weren’t 15 years ahead of the rest of the world in aircraft technology.

Meanwhile, as the first F-101 “Voodo” interceptors were rolled off the ever expanding production lines, several Banshee squadrons were sold to the UK as part of the United States Air Force Act to Sell First Generation Craft to Strengthen our Allies and Also make us Rich (commonly referred to as USAFASFGCSAAR.) These Banshees had achieved a whole three years of service, and some of them had even engaged enemy aircraft in their illustrious lifespan.
My military production was growing so fast, however, that the act was soon revised to the United States Armed Forces Act to Sell First Generation Craft to Strengthen our Allies and Also make us Rich (the acronym is the same.) With the combination of my new Conqueror and Raptor tanks about doubling the size of the army’s tank corps, the SS (****** Shermans) were no more. With bundles of 10 Sherman divisions being sold for the low, low price of $100 M, (Exclusive offer: capitalists only) they were disappearing fast.

On March 14th, 1952, came my most important decision so far: the signing of the United States General Order to Stop Using Unnecessarily Long and Confusing Acronyms in Order to Make Things Easier to Remember and Lower the Alarming Suicide Rate Among Military Personnel. (USGOSUULCAOMTERLASRAMP for short.) And so, this running gag came to an abrupt end, and my readers did rejoice.

Something that I was actually being ASKED for, meanwhile, was oil, which was fast outstripping even hastily-assembled WWII tanks as the United State’s chief export. With a surplus of 2 million barrels produced every day, the industry was booming, while my stocks remained high.
The final months of 1952 saw a shift in the way I was handling the crisis in South East Asia. The fact that the likelihood of a Chinese attack had once again risen to high brought me out of my economy-mania as I realized that Operation Dragon’s Eye may not have gone unnoticed—and neither, I suspected, had my massive deployments throughout Korea. By now, exactly half of my armed forces were deployed. (This is no joke. 129 deployed, 129 reserve. Lost the picture.)
However, Dragon’s eye had proven that further forces were required in the region if I could be expected to hold out against China. Therefore, the latest dispatch of troops was sent not to Korea, but Japan. Hopefully the Chinese wouldn’t be able to see it, but they’d still be close enough to respond if need be. Besides, Japan itself was still woefully undefended.

In other news, the Russians had apparently taken Dragon’s eye as a personal challenge and had begun to conduct their own intelligence operations:
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And, as naval readiness was now on medium due to the crisis, I’d been forced to give my secretary of defence some “creative licence” in the governing of my armed forces. I honestly think that wasn’t such a good idea though, as evidenced in this rather...peculiar deployment of a grand total of 222 navy ships...in the great lakes.
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And then there’s this:
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Good job, Denmark. Good job.

However, by far the most interesting development was the new status quo in Columbia. In June of 1953, the government was overthrown by a military coup. The nation left my sphere of influence and became Non-aligned, revoking all diplomatic agreements with the US.

June 17th, 1953
Amid the souring of relations with the South American nation of Columbia, a press conference has been arranged with the President. He is expected to deliver a speech regarding the nation’s response to the new situation.

“Over the past month, the nation of Columbia has gone through tremendous upheaval. Their previously free democratic government has been overthrown by their military, and Andreas Zapata has forcibly seized control of the country. As such, I will begin by offering both my personal condolences and the condolences of the nation to the people of Columbia.” The president pauses, and before he speaks again a dozen cameras have flashed.
“The new government has then proceeded to cut of all diplomatic relations with the United States of America, and have publically announced the end of the friendly stance which they have previously held towards this nation.” Another pause—even more flashes this time.
“This is a clear act of hostility towards the United States, and this has been noted. Furthermore, we cannot with clear conscience tolerate the deprivation of a people’s basic democratic rights by a military dictator who has no legitimate claim to lead them. This so-called government did not come to power by legitimate means, and therefore, in the eyes of the United States, it will remain an illegitimate establishment. As long as Zapata and his administration remain in power, Columbia will be a rogue nation in the eyes of the United States. The Ambassador was recalled yesterday. Thank you for your time.”


This event got the “red alert” sirens whirring in my head. The sway into “Non-Aligned” was a violation of the Monroe doctrine (for those of you who don’t know, the Monroe doctrine is basically ‘My side of the world = my sphere of influence.’ If the nation started to lean into the USSR’s sphere, I could be looking at a Cuba-like situation, with the Soviet military able to set up shop right on my doorstep.

It was clear that the new administration needed to go, so I decided to start playing around with all those fancy “Department of State” buttons. I clicked on “support opposition.” With no democratic system in place, I doubted it would help much, but I decided to give it until the end of July to work. If it didn’t, harsher measures would have to be taken. At the same time, I sent the CIA in to the nation’s capital on an ‘Espionage’ mission. I had no clue if it’d give me any info besides troop movements, but the agency wasn’t doing anything else.

Meanwhile, this,
Image
showed that the global situation was indeed beginning to destabilize.

The 31st of July came and there had been no change in the status quo. Well, I knew it was never going to work, but I thought it was worth a shot.
My next move was far bigger. The CIA had a new mission: terminate Andres Zapata. The operation cost 450 million, put 5 spies on foreign soil, and failed within four days. Fortunately, the spies were able to return home safely.
So, all in all, there was very little I could do. Trying to fund an insurgency would bankrupt me very quickly, and I wasn’t quite ready to go to war. Still, I felt decidedly uneasy...

However, as of October 28th, I could at least feel nice and safe in the knowledge that I had developed the hydrogen bomb, to bring peace and stability to the world. Yaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Oh, and if I didn’t feel as if my grip was slipping enough, three of France’s colonies (South Vietnam included) achieved independence on November the 9th.
So, I’m finishing on January 1st, 1954. I know this episode has been fairly short and uneventful, but I’m stopping here partly because I need some advice from anyone who’s reading this.

Firstly, events in Southeast Asia are concerning me. As the French will likely be pulling out, this is a golden opportunity for Communism to spread. I want to counter by engaging in diplomacy, but unfortunately both countries have a very low civilian rating of me and it’s hurting relations big time. Could somebody tell me how I’m supposed to improve the civilian rating? If there’s some way I can provide humanitarian aid or something I’m happy to spend fairly large sums.

Secondly, I really would like to have a more effective intelligence agency. In my (very limited) experience with this game, they have only ever succeeded at simple recon missions, and I really want to have some flexibility in this area. Is there any way to improve CIA quality? Also, while we’re on the topic of espionage, does anybody have any suggestions on how I can work against Columbia? Even with “low” insurgency funding it’s 700 M a day, which I cannot afford. I know I haven’t got any reason to be too concerned yet, but since I’m a noob I want to make sure I’m actively working to suppress USSR influence, as I need every advantage I can get.

Finally, does anybody have any good suggestions for the improvement of my military? My military expansion boom came to a close about a year ago, because my increased expenses couldn't sustain the meteoric growth and because I probably have enough units now to guzzle up all my personnel and then some. Still, does anybody have any good suggestions? Right now I’m still going strong with the production of air units, focusing on Phantoms and (to a lesser extent) B-52s. I’m also in the middle of researching Enterprise class carriers, which will be my first nuclear powered units. Apart from that though, there’s not much activity in that area. Any suggestions for how I can improve my military in any way—whether it’s a particular unit to research or suggestions for the composition for my force in Korea—will be very welcome.
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by Jolly_duck »

Fantastic post, loving the story. Particularly enjoyed the press conference - could feel the atmosphere in the room and could hear the flashes of the cameras! Personally I would petition to repeal the USGOSUULCAOMTERLASRAMP act :lol:
As a fellow Newb I don't know what to recommend for your questions, but I look forward to the next post where it sounds like ALOT is gunna kick off.
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by GIJoe597 »

I do not have the game, yet, as I will not use steaming pile for anything, alas I can offer no insight.

Enjoying the AAR so far.
https://www.youtube.com/user/GIJoe597


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nerdymidgetkid
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by nerdymidgetkid »

EPISODE 4: WELL, CRAP

Greetings again to my nonexistent fans! I know it’s been a while. I could make up some story about my mother being sick or a hurricane hitting my house or something, but here’s the cold hard truth: I rage quitted.
You see, I was completely fuming over the “dictator crisis” which was sweeping across central and southern America, so eventually I ended up invading Guatemala. I then got the following message:
Image
What the hell, game? After cutting all ties with me, they were seriously still in my sphere the whole time? Even after I stopped recognizing their existence? (Yeah, I kinda withdrew my embassy.)
How the hell was I supposed to know what sphere they were in? How do I know what sphere ANY nation was in? I just...GAH!
And so I decided to take a step back for a while *pulled my hair out and ran away crying* and I stopped. But never fear, my admirers, I have returned!
So, this episode simply details what’s been going on since Episode 3. Expect a new update fairly soon.

The new year began in a fairly uneventful fashion. The treasury remained constant, as did military production. No new deployments were made, and the likelihood of a Chinese attack became slightly lower. I was by now a lot less worried than I had been that there would actually be a war with China, and I hoped that my extensive deployments in Korea would provide enough of a deterrent to be a long-term solution to the problem.
I was, however, having some trouble in the oil sector, where offers were getting a lot worse. In the past, there would often be periods where less-than-desirable offers would be made, but they’d always be quickly dispelled after I rejected a few offers. However, this dip in the buying price had persisted since before the beginning of the year and by May, it became clear that I’d have to be a bit more lenient. In fairness, while the offers were getting further and further from what the product was supposedly worth, the quantity that was being asked for was also generally higher. It may simply have been that nations were requiring larger and larger amounts of the stuff while the actual worth/offer ratio was staying the same.
However, by June much a more pressing problem had arisen:
Image
Here was the domino effect in action. Besides the implications of these events from a roleplaying standpoint, these new regimes represented a serious threat to me. The fact that they were cutting all diplomatic agreements—despite the fact that both of their governments seemed oddly enough to adore me—and the fact that they had moved to “Non Aligned” made it seem to me like they were in real danger of starting to move over to the Socialist side. And, as soon as they did so, they would be beyond my reach. I knew that the Soviets had already developed missile trucks, so not only would this mean conventional air forces being within striking range of the US, but it would likely mean a nuclear threat too.
The worst thing was that I had yet to hit rock bottom. 2 Democratic governments, both friendly to me, were still in central America alone. If these military coups became a trend, then the Soviets would be able to pick and chose their allies—if one didn’t want to go Socialist, they’d just try the next, and the next, and the next. It would be unlikely that soon enough there wouldn't be one that would turn to Socialism, and once they did, the Soviets would fortify the hell out of it and set up their nuclear shop.
Again, my ambassadors were recalled, but, I realized, simply cancelling an Embassy was going to do nothing to solve the problem. I had to try and keep the Monroe doctrine intact, I decided, or this would turn out to be a very short AAR...
Once again, I sent in the CIA to kill the new dictator. They took longer this time, but the result was the same: no joy, but no capture either.
Meanwhile...
Image
The fact that after their coup Egypt moved over to USSR leaning (and again, broke all diplomatic treaties with me) started to make me very suspicious about who was causing these coups—I also started to think that Russian intelligence was quite possibly a lot better than mine.
Finally, this:
Image
Outright proved that it was a trend, if not a large scale Soviet Operation.
This was the final straw. I had to act swiftly and decisively to stop this before the situation was far beyond my control. I had already waited too long...
Still, a couple of days later, this:
Image
Kind of discounted the whole ‘Soviet’ idea. Still, decisive action, and all that.

So, as I’ve said, I then invaded Guatemala only to find that they were in my sphere the whole time and the green bar showing that their government was in love with me wasn’t a glitch. Luckily, I for once had the good sense to save before the fact. So, the invasion force is now being recalled with the wonders of hindsight, and I will begin the next episode by creating a suitable end to this “crisis.”
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by GIJoe597 »

I do not have CW so I am a tad confused. The first pictured message about Guatemala indicated it has moved FROM U.S.A. "leaning" TO non-aligned. This reads to me as it is NOT on the Soviet side or the U.S.A, but rather up for grabs.

Are the stances Non-Aligned>Leaning>In Sphere?

If yes, Guatemala was only Leaning towards U.S.A., not IN their sphere, is that correct?
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number47
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Re: Screwing up a Superpower--USA Playthrough of a n00b

Post by number47 »

GIJoe597 wrote: Are the stances Non-Aligned>Leaning>In Sphere?
You are correct.
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