United States

United States

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Capital:

Washington D.C.

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Government type:

Democratic, Liberal

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Faction:

Neutral

The United States is one of the largest and richest countries in the globe in 1936 and the only major power outside of Europe and Asia. Despite its immense wealth in resources and infrastructure assets, the USA is heavily restrained by its laws and national spirits at the start of the game. Should the U.S. remove these restrictions and build up its military might (and optionally get allies by creating or joining a faction), it can easily become a world superpower, similarly to its real-life counterpart.

Geography

The United States of America is a vast nation in central and north North America. Bordering to the north and east via Alaska is the  Dominion of Canada, a British dominion, and the south borders  Mexico. The US has both Atlantic and Pacific coastlines, with Florida in the southeast of the nation just over  Cuba, and the Aleutian Islands of Alaska in the northwest, very close to the USSR. The USA possesses the Panama Canal, which is used to transit ships.

Events

Main article: American events

National focus

American national focus tree.

Main article: American national focus tree

The American national focus tree can be divided into 4 branches and 3 Sub-Branches:

Continue the New Deal/ Reestablish the Gold Standard Branch

This branch allows the United States to begin removing the effects of the Great Depression in one of two ways, increase research, change political leanings or increase production.

The national focuses in the center of the branch are all Democratic and thus broadly historical, but on either edge of the branch (gated behind the national focuses "Suspend the Persecution" and "America First", respectively, lie the Communist and Fascist branches of the national focus tree, both of which will cause a civil war if progressed through.

The centre branch diverges into two sub-branches; Limited Intervention and Neutrality Act.

• Limited Intervention allows the United States to intervene in the approaching war in Europe or Asia earlier than historical by allowing them to send volunteers, guarantee independence and provide lend-lease at less World Tension in addition to improving espionage and eventually even permitting military action by enabling a set decisions for that, but this is not supported by either the House of Representatives or Senate (increasing opposition in both) and will make it harder to mobilise the economy.
• Neutrality Act does the opposite; It restricts the country's foreign policy by preventing the United States from intervening in either Europe of Asia and causes the country to turn inwards. However, this inwards turn allows the United States to address the Great Depression more effectively and enables the US to begin building up its economy and mobilising itself more gradually and more effectively, which would allow them to be stronger and more prepared for when the time to go to war invariably comes. This is the historical path.

• The Communist branch requires the national focus Continue the New Deal and the Fascist branch requires the national focus Reestablish the Gold Standard. Both are mutually exclusive.

  Suspend the Persecution Sub-branch

This is the Communist sub-branch. It focuses on gradually changing the political party to communism and implementing various socialist policies to dismantle capitalism to form the Communist States of America. It then continues onwards to allying with other communist nations (either the  Soviet Union or  Communist China) and finally leads to forcefully demanding the decolonisation of the Pacific and declaring war on the european nations to end monarchism and shatter the colonial empires.

Taking either the Full Desegregation or Union Representation Act national focuses will lead to a civil war. It requires Man the Guns.

• America First Sub-branch

This is the Fascist sub-branch. It focuses on gradually changing the ideology to fascism by allying with the Silver Legion of America led by William Dudley Pelley and Charles Lindbergh, having them recruit the German-American Bund and the Free Corps and acquiring foreign aid from other fascist powers to ultimately inaugurate the  Confederated States of America, thus allowing Pelley to seize power and install himself as "Chief" (an american equipvalent to "Führer" and "Il Duce") of America, dismantling democracy in the process.

From there, the path becomes extremely aggressive, as the War Powers Act opens up a set of national focuses that focus annexing  Cuba, subjugating  Mexico and annexing British Columbia from  Canada to create a land connection to Alaska. After that, the path of aggression escalates ever further, beginning with the subjugation of the entire American continent, demands for subordination to Pacific countries (or their overlords) before culminating in the aptly named national focus Global Hegemony which tops it all off with War Goals against all major powers, with the intent to turn them into puppet states and achieve World Domination.

Taking either the Voter Registration Act or Ally With the Silver Shirts national focuses will lead to a civil war. It requires Man the Guns.

War Plans Division Branch

This Branch improves planning speed and enables United States to take decisions that give attack and defense bonuses against all major countries and certain others as well, though it does not give War Goals (but those can be cained from the War Powers Act sub-branch under the fascist branch). It will also allow the United States to form a faction and invite democratic Latin American countries into it in addition to building coastal forts and naval bases in the Pacific.

War Department Branch

This Branch is a combined Army and Air Force Branch. It gives army and air technology research boosts as well as various production cost discounts to tanks and airplanes. It also allows the United States to increase it conscription law to Limited Conscription if it is below that and also adds 2% more recruitable manpower.

• Two Ocean Navy Act Sub-branch

This Branch is the Navy Branch. It adds 10 Naval Dockyards to California and New York (5 each) and gives naval technology research boosts and production cost discounts to nearly every ship class except for submarines.

Technology

The USA starts in 1936 with four research slots, and can acquire two more slots from its national focuses - Scientist Haven and either American Institute of Sciences or Scientific Research & Development Office. Compared to the rest of the world's countries, the option to have a total of 6 slots is almost unique.

The democratic path of the national focus tree ends with Scientist Haven. This can either crop up halfway down the tree if Alf Landon is elected in 1936 or at the very end if Roosevelt remains. Conversely, the Scientific Research & Development Office comes up early in Roosevelt's side of the democratic tree, while American Institute of Sciences is at the end of Landon's side.

The six slots give it a significant advantage in the late game to be able to research nuclear, jet and rocket technology and still maintain its research in other areas. Scientist Haven focus represents the scientists and engineers who escaped from the war in Europe and travelled to the USA to continue their work.

Further, as a democratic nation there is a decision to grant refuge to scientists from the  German Reich and  Italy, trading a minor hit to stability for a boost to research speed.

Army technology	Naval technology	Air technology	Electronics & industry
Infantry Equipment I Improved Infantry Equipment I (1939) Support Weapons II (1939) Motorized Marines I Support Equipment Engineer Company I Recon Company I Great War Tank Light Tank I (1939) Towed Artillery I Interwar Artillery (1939) Towed Anti-Air I Towed Anti-Tank I (1939)	1936 Destroyer Hull Basic Depth Charges Passive Sonar Active Sonar (1939) 1936 Cruiser Hull Improved Airplane Catapult Basic Cruiser Armor Scheme Inclined Belt Cruiser Armor Scheme (1939) Early Heavy Ship Hull 1940 Heavy Ship Hull (1939) Inclined Belt Armor Scheme 1936 Carrier Hull 1936 Submarine Hull Basic Torpedo Improved Ship Torpedo Launcher (1939) Basic Light Battery Basic Medium Battery Basic Heavy Battery Improved Heavy Battery (1939) Turreted Secondary Battery Dual-Purpose Secondary Battery (1939) Contact Mine Minelaying Submarine Transport Ship Without Man the Guns: Clemson Class (Destroyer I) Upgraded Farragut Class Brooklyn Class (Light Cruiser II)) Pensacola Class (Heavy Cruiser I) Upgraded Portland Class Lexington Class (Battlecruiser I) New York Class (Battleship I) Upgraded New Mexico Class Upgraded Colorado Class Ranger Class (Carrier II) Upgraded Yorktown Class Porpoise Class (Submarine II) Transport Ship	Interwar Fighter Interwar Carrier Fighter Fighter I (1939) Carrier Fighter I (1939) Interwar Bomber Heavy Fighter I (1939) Tactical Bomber I (1939) Strategic Bomber I (1939) Close Air Support I Close Air Support II (1939) Carrier CAS I Naval Bomber I Carrier Naval Bomber I	Computing Machine (1939) Radio Detection (1939) Advanced Machine Tools (1939) Dispersed Industry III (1939) Construction III (1939) Fuel Storage Synthetic Oil Experiments (1939) Oil Processing (1939) Fuel Refining I Fuel Refining III (1939)
Doctrines
Superior Firepower Delay (1939)	Base Strike Submarine Operations (1939) Carrier Primacy (1939)	Naval Strike Tactics (1939)

Cosmetic names

The USA has several unique names and appearances for various technologies and equipment, listed here. Note that generic names are not listed.

Infantry & motorized techs

Type	1918	1936	1938	1939	1940	1941	1942	1943	1944
Support Weapons	BAR & Stokes mortar		M1917 Browning MG & M2 60 mm mortar		M1919 Browning MG & M1 mortar		M1941 Johnson MG & M2 4.2 inch mortar
Infantry Equipment	M1903 Springfield	M1 Garand		M1 Thompson			M2 Carbine
Infantry Anti-Tank							M1 Bazooka	M20 recoilless rifle
Motorized		GMC CCKW
Motorized Rocket Artillery				Xylophone
Mechanized					M2 Half Track Car		M3 Half-Track		M5 Half-Track
Amtrac						LVT-2		LVT-4

Armor techs

Tech year	Amphibious	Light (TD/SPG/AA)	Medium (TD/SPG/AA)	Modern (TD/SPG/AA)	Heavy (TD/SPG/AA)	Super-Heavy (TD/SPG/AA)
1918		Great War Tank
1934		M2 Light (M6 GMC / NA / NA)			T1 Heavy
1936		M3 Stuart (T56 GMC / M8 HMC / T65 GMC)
1939			M3 Lee (M10 Wolverine / (M7 Priest / NA)
1940	LVT-1(A)
1941		Chaffee (T48 GMC / M41 HMC / M19 GMC)	M4 Sherman (M18 Hellcat / M12 GMC / NA)		M6A1
1942	Sherman DD
1943			T20 M27 (M36 Jackson / M40 GMC / NA)		M26 Pershing (NA / T92 HMC / NA)	T95
1945				M46 Patton (NA / NA / M42 Duster)

Artillery techs

Tech year	Anti-Air	Artillery	Rocket Artillery	Anti-Tank
1934		75 mm Gun M1897
1936	37 mm Gun M1			37 mm Gun M3
1939		105 mm M101A1
1940	40 mm M1		M8	57 mm Gun M1
1942		155 mm M114
1943	90 mm Gun M3		M16	3-inch Gun M5

Naval techs (Without )

Type	1922	1936	1940	1944
Destroyer	Clemson Class	Sims Class	Fletcher Class	Allen M Sumner Class
Light Cruiser	Omaha Class	Brooklyn Class	Cleveland Class	Fargo Class
Heavy Cruiser	Pensacola Class	Wichita Class	Baltimore Class	Oregon City Class
Battlecruiser	Lexington Class		Alaska Class
Battleship	New York Class	North Carolina Class	Iowa Class	Illinois Class
Super-Heavy Battleship		Virginia Class		Montana Class
Carrier	Lexington Class	Ranger Class	Essex Class	Midway Class
Submarine	S Class	Porpoise Class	Tambor Class	Balao Class

Aircraft techs

Tech year	Close Air Support (Carrier)	Fighter (Carrier)	Naval Bomber (Carrier)	Heavy Fighter	Tactical Bomber	Strategic Bomber	Scout Plane
1933		P-1 Hawk (FF "Fifi")			B-18 Bolo
1936	A-17 (Northtop BT)	P-40 Warhawk (F3F)	PBY Catalina (TBD Devastator)	P-38 Lightning	B-23 Dragon	B-17 Flying Fortress
1940	A-20 (SBD-2 Dauntless)	P-39 Airacobra (F4F Wildcat)	PBM Mariner (TBF-1C Avenger)	P-47 Thunderbolt	B-25 Mitchell	B-24 Liberator
1944	A-26 (SB2C-1s Helldiver)	P-51 Mustang (F6F Hellcat)	PB4Y-2 Privateer (BTD Destroyer)	XP-58 Chain Lightning	XB-28 Dragon	B-29 Superfortress
Jet Engine Technology
1945		P-80 Shooting Star			NA
1950		F-86 Sabre			XB-51	B-45 Tornado I

 

Diplomacy

The United States controls several islands in the Pacific such as Guam, Wake, and Midway to name a few. Puerto Rico, Alaska and Hawaii are treated as colony states at the start, However, the USA can take statehood decisions to grant them cores. The  Philippines is a U.S. puppet.

Every country in North, Central, and South America is guaranteed by the USA under the Monroe Doctrine. This limits the USA in its diplomatic options: Guaranteeing one more country would cost the USA 550 political power.

The USA does not start as a member of a faction, although it can form the Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance through the focus "Hemisphere Defense" - what members are invited to the faction will depend on what ideology the US is when the focus is completed (it can range from only inviting Paraguay if the US is communist to inviting most of Central/South America if the US is Democratic). On historical, the US will join the Allies after Japan declares war on the Phillipines, largely due to Japan following said declaration with one on the Dutch East Indies and British Malaya.

If the US takes the focus "Unholy Alliance", and the Soviets accept them into the faction, the US is granted a decision that, when the USSR is at war, allows them to annex the USSR if the USSR ever gets a surrender threshold of 20% or lower as long as the US is in the ComIntern (the US needs to be communist if it wishes to join the ComIntern by clicking the "Join Faction" button, but it can take the focus even if it's democratic).

Note that this decision does not core the USSR, it only occupies it (likely due to how overpowered said decision would be), although the US does not need to be in the same war as the USSR to take the decision, meaning that if one was to use the decision while the USSR, the nation that had been at war with the USSR would be forced to leave the territory that had previously belonged to the USSR.

Diplomatic rules

The rules are controlled by their ideology, the ideology of their faction and their national spirit(s). Due to The Great Depression and  Undisturbed Isolation the U.S. requires a higher amount of world tension to join a faction. The latter also raises the world tension limit for other diplomatic actions.

Rule	Whether it applies	Reason
Can declare war on country of the same ideology group without a war goal	No	Democracy
Can Guarantee other Ideologies	Yes	Democracy
Can join Factions led by another Ideology	No	National spirit: Home of the Free
Can create Factions	Yes	National spirit: Home of the Free
Lowers World Tension with Guarantees	Yes	Democracy
Can puppet a country	No	Democracy
Can justify wargoals against a country that have not generated world tension	No	Democracy

Politics

National spirits

The Great Depression

• Daily Political Power cost: +1.00
• Resource Gain Efficiency: -20%
• Recruitable Population Factor: -50%
• Consumer Goods Factories: 30%
• Join faction tension limit: +20%

Although a worldwide phenomenon, the Great Depression started with a stock market crash in the United States and has caused unemployment rates to soar and tax revenue to plummet. The American people and its government have enough to worry about without getting involved in another war.

Home of the Free

• Ideology drift defense: +20%
• Cannot join factions lead by another ideology
• Can create factions

USA considers itself a bastion and maybe even the cradle of democracy and liberty. Whatever they choose to be, their values are difficult to compromise, however tempting some opportunities might seem.

In the 1936 election, the USA can choose the party to lead it. Depending on the choice, another National Spirit can be added:

• If Democratic Party, New Deal
  • Infrastructure construction speed: +20%
  • Stability: +10%
• If Republican Party, there is no change to the national spirits, but:
  • They gain the Industrial Concern Standard Oil of California, which gives Industrial Research Speed: +5% and Refining Research Speed: +15%
  • The new leader of the USA becomes Alf Landon, who has the trait Staunch Constitutionalist - Ideology Drift Defense: +50%

With the Man the Guns expansion enabled, the United States starts with an additional national spirit:

London Naval Treaty Signatory

• Carrier Max Cost: 9500
• Cruiser Max Cost: 5300
• Heavy Ship Max Cost: 10000

We have signed the London Naval Treaty and accordingly are restricted in the size of our capital ships.

Ideology

USA starts 1936 as a democracy, with elections every four years. The ruling party is the Democratic Party led by Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Elections are held every four years; in-game, this applies to 1936, 1940, and 1944. Each time, the player will be prompted to choose the outcome. FDR, as the incumbent, will run for the Democrats each time even if he has been unseated in a previous election. The Republicans run three candidates: Alf Landon in 1936, Wendell Willkie in 1940, and Thomas E. Dewey in 1944. Each grant different bonuses and the player can select them.

Note that the Republican candidate will not change if they won the previous election, as they will be running as the incumbent. For example, if the player were to choose Alf Landon in 1936, they will not be able to choose Wendell Willkie in 1940. The USA has no national focus that allows it to change ideology unless Man the Guns is active. If the player wants to try to change the ideology then they should appoint political advisors either:

• Charles Coughlin, who is a Fascist Demagogue: Daily Fascism Support: +0.1
• Earl Browder, who is a Communist Revolutionary: Daily Communist Support: +0.1

Both cost 150 political power to appoint. Support for the fascist Silver Legion of America led by William Dudley Pelley, or for the communist Communist Party USA led by Earl Browder himself, will steadily increase. Because of the USA's national spirit Home of the Free, this will be slower than normal - Ideology Defense Drift: +20%. The result of this will be to convert the USA to a fascist or communist country. The party and leader of the country will change, and they will change the name and flag. Once this has happened, the diplomatic rules applied to fascist or communist countries apply to the USA. There will be no more elections.

Depending on how the player handles this - various events will pop up asking them how they would like to proceed - the player may end up in a civil war, against the forces of democracy. The more political support the player builds up, the more of the country they will control if that happens. At 33% support, the player will be asked if they would like to have a civil war and at 50% support, they can choose to switch governments to either fascist or communist, depending on which ideology is the most dominant.

Man the Guns introduces the Second American Civil War branch, which is pursued either by going down the "Suspend the Persecution" sub-branch or the "America First" sub-branch. Regardless of whichever branch is chosen, the same broad path begins as a timer starts ticking down to war - Industrialists begin moving factories to their preferred region (North or South), government arsenals are raided, tax income is withheld from the federal government, National Guard formations are mobilized and trained, until secession is declared.

Shortly after this point, unless a specific focus is taken, the states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Ohio declare "neutrality" in the war, becoming the "Neutral States of America". They will no longer be controlled by the player and will sell weapons and equipment to both sides while forming their own defence force and acting as a de facto independent faction. Once the Civil War ends, they will rejoin whichever side won.

Leaders

Leader	Ideology	Party	In power (1936)	Popularity	Country name	Unique portrait?	Leader trait
Franklin Delano Roosevelt	Democracy/Liberalism	Democratic Party	Yes	99%	United States	Yes	Dislikes Germany: AI Modifier: +200 to antagonize Germany
Harry S. Truman	Democracy/Liberalism	Democratic Party	No, can come to power via event (Death of FDR event)	---	United States	Yes	---
Alf Landon	Democracy/Conservatism	Republican Party	No, can come to power via event (1936 Election event)	---	United States	Yes	Staunch Constitutionalist: Drift Defence Factor +50%
Wendell Wilkie	Democracy/Liberalism	Republican Party	No, can come to power via event (1940 Election event)	---	United States	Yes	---
Thomas E. Dewey	Democracy/Conservatism	Republican Party	No, can come to power via event (1944 Election event chain)	---	United States	Yes	---
Douglas MacArthur	Democracy/Conservatism	Republican Party	No, can come to power via event (1944 Election event chain)	---	United States	Yes	---
Earl Browder	Communism/Marxism	Communist Party USA	No, can come to power by coup	1%	Communist States of America	Yes	---
Douglas MacArthur	Non-Aligned/Despotism	Non-Aligned	No, can come to power via event (MacArthur offers for Government)	---	American Junta	Yes	American Caesar: Division Attack on core territory +10% Division Defense on core territory +10% Army Chief Cost -25% Air Chief Cost -25% Navy Chief Cost -25% High Command Cost -25%
Wallis I	Non-Aligned/Despotism	Non-Aligned	No, can come to power via British decision (Declare American Monarchy)	---	United Kingdom of America (British Puppet), Loyalists (Independent)	Yes	Unpopular Monarch: Political Power Gain −30% Stability -20% Socialite Connections: Trade Laws Cost −25% Economy Cost −25% Industrial Output +10% Queen Wallis I, First of Her Name, by the Grace of God Queen of the Americas, Grand Admiral of the Royal American Navy, Duchess of Wallington, Duchess of Manhattan, Duchess of Long Island, Countess of Orange, Countess of O'ahu, Marquis of New Orleans, Baroness of Springfield, Baroness of Hollywood, Baroness of Central Park, Grand Socialite, Protector of Liberty, Northwest Vanguard of Alaska, Avenger of the Boston Tea Party, Terror of Washington D.C.: Daily Support for Unaligned +0.05
Charles Lindbergh	Fascism/Fascism	Silver Legion of America	No, can come to power via event (William Dudley Pelley challenges Douglas MacArthur)	---	Confederated States of America	Yes	---
Douglas MacArthur	Fascism/Rexism	Silver Legion of America	No, can come to power via American decision (Constitutional Convention)	---	Confederated States of America	Yes	American Caesar: Division Attack on core territory +10% Division Defense on core territory +10% Army Chief Cost -25% Air Chief Cost -25% Navy Chief Cost -25% High Command Cost -25%
William Dudley Pelley	Fascism/Fascism	Silver Legion of America	No, can come to power by coup or via event (William Dudley Pelley challenges Douglas MacArthur)	0%	Free American Empire/Confederated States of America	Yes	---
Adam Hilt	Fascism/Nazism	Silver Legion of America	No, can come to power via event (William Dudley Pelley challenges Douglas MacArthur)	---	Confederated States of America	Yes	Great Architect: Construction Speed +1%

Staff and designers

These are choices of ministers and design companies for the United States.

Political Advisors

Advisor	Type	Effect	Cost()
Earl Browder	Communist Revolutionary	Daily Communism Support: +0.10 Has completed focus Suspend the Persecution Has not started focus Neutrality Act Has not started focus Limited Intervention	150
Harry White	Financial Expert	Consumer Goods Factories: -5.0% Has completed focus Reach out to the Ware Group Does not have political advisor Henry Morgenthau Jr.	0
Victor Perlo	Economist	Production Efficiency Cap: +5.00% Has completed focus Reach out to the Ware group	0
Whittaker Chambers	Editor	Political Power Gain: +5% Stability: +5.00% Has completed focus Reach out to the Ware Group	0
Joseph Patterson	Editor	Political Power Gain: +5% Stability: +5.00% Has completed focus America First	50
William H. Regnery	Captain of Industry	Infrastructure Construction Speed: +10.00% Civilian Factory Construction Speed: +10.00% Refinery Construction Speed: +10.00% Has completed focus America First	50
Charles Coughlin	Fascist Demagogue	Daily Fascism Support: +0.10 Has completed focus America First Has not started focus Neutrality Act Has not started focus Limited Intervention	150
Joseph McCarthy	Anti-Communist Crusader	Stability: +5.00% Daily Communism Support: -0.10 Has completed focus Empower the Huac	150
Harold L. Ickes	Democratic Reformer	Daily Democracy Support: +0.10	150
John Winant	Compassionate Gentleman	Improve relations opinion: +15%	150
Robert Taft	Silent Workhorse	Political Power Gain: +15%	150
Cordell Hull	Smooth-Talking Charmer	Trade deal opinion factor: +10%	150
Henry Morgenthau Jr.	Economic Reformer	Consumer Goods Factories: -5.0% Does not have political advisor Harry White	150
Henry Stimson	War Industrialist	Military Factory Construction Speed: +10.0% Dockyard Construction Speed: +10.0% Fuel Silo Construction Speed: +10.0%	150
Donald Nelson	Armaments Organizer	Civilian to Military Factory conversion cost: -20%	150
William J. Donovan	Illusive Gentleman	Operative Slots: +1 Agency upgrade time: -15.0% Has created an Intelligence Agency More than 50% World Tension	150

Tank Designers

Designer	Type	Effect	Cost()
Marmon-Herrington	Mobile Tank Designer	Armor Research Speed: +15% Armor: Max Speed: +5% Reliability: +10% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150
Chrysler	Medium Tank Designer	Armor Research Speed: +15% Armor: Reliability: +5% Soft Attack: +5% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150
Detroit Arsenal		Armor Research Speed: +15% Medium Tank Production Cost: -10% Light Tank Production Cost: -10% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired. Has completed focus Main Battle Tanks	150
Tank Destroyer Board		Armor Research Speed: +15% Light Tank Destroyer: Production Cost: -10% Piercing: +10% Hard Attack: +25% Medium Tank Destroyer: Production Cost: -10% Piercing: +10% Hard Attack: +25% Heavy Tank Destroyer: Production Cost: -10% Piercing: +10% Hard Attack: +25% By selecting this Design Company they will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired. Has completed focus Tank Destroyer Doctrine	150
Army Ordnance Department	Heavy Tank Designer	Armor Research Speed: +15% Armor: Armor: +5% Hard Attack: +5% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150

Ship Designers

Designer	Type	Effect	Cost()
Norfolk Naval Yard	Coastal Defense Fleet Designer	Naval Research Speed: +15% Carrier: Production Cost: -25% Deck size: -20% Max Range: -50% Capital Ship: Production Cost: -25% Armor: -20% Heavy Attack: -20% Max Range: -50% Screen: Production Cost: -25% Max Range: -50% Submarine: Production Cost: -25% Max Range: -50% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150
Electric Boat Company	Raiding Fleet Designer	Naval Research Speed: +15% Carrier: Surface Visibility: -10% Max Speed: +10% Deck size: -10% Capital Ship: Surface Visibility: -10% Max Speed: +10% Heavy Attack: -10% Screen: Surface Visibility: -10% Max Speed: +10% Submarine: Sub Visibility: -10% Surface Visibility: -10% Max Speed: +10% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150
ฺBrooklyn Naval Yard	Atlantic Fleet Designer	Naval Research Speed: +15% Carrier: Armor: +50% HP: +10% Capital Ship: Armor: +10% Heavy Attack: +10% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150
Newport News Shipbuilding	Pacific Fleet Designer	Naval Research Speed: +15% Carrier: Deck size: +25% Armor: -15% Max Range: +25% Capital Ship: Max Range: +25% Screen: Max Range: +25% Submarine: Max Range: +25% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150

Aircraft Designers

Designer	Type	Effect	Cost()
North American Aviation	Light Aircraft Designer	Air Research Speed: +15% Fighter: Agility: +10% Max Speed: +10% Carrier Fighter: Agility: +10% Max Speed: +10% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150
Lockheed	Medium Aircraft Designer	Air Research Speed: +15% Heavy Fighter: Reliability: +20% Tactical Bomber: Reliability: +20% Scout Planes: Reliability: +20% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150
Douglas Aircraft Company	CAS Designer	Air Research Speed: +15% Close Air Support: Ground Attack: +10% Reliability: +10% Carrier CAS: Ground Attack: +10% Reliability: +10% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150
Boeing	Heavy Aircraft Designer	Air Research Speed: +15% Strategic Bomber: Strategic Bombing: +10% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150
Grumman	Naval Aircraft Designer	Air Research Speed: +15% Naval Bomber: Range: +10% Naval Attack: +10% CV Naval Bomber: Range: +10% Naval Attack: +10% Carrier Fighter: Range: +10% Agility: +10% Carrier CAS: Range: +10% Naval Attack: +10% By selecting this Design Company it will permanently affect capabilities on all equipment researched while they are hired.	150

Materiel Designers

Designer	Type	Effect	Cost()
Springfield Armory	Infantry Equipment Designer	Weapons and Equipment Research Speed: +15%	150
Ford Motor Company	Motorized Equipment Designer	Motorization Research Speed: +15%	150
Rock Island Arsenal	Artillery Designer	Artillery Research Speed: +15%	150

Industrial Concern

Designer	Type	Effect	Cost()
Standard Oil of California	Refining Concern	Industrial Research Speed: +5% Synthetic Resources Research Speed: +15 %	150
General Electric	Electronics Concern	Electronics Research Speed: +15%	150
General Motors	Industrial Concern	Industrial Research Speed: +15% Factory Output: +5% Has completed focus Wartime Industry	150

Theorists

Designer	Type	Effect	Cost()
Omar Bradley	Superior Firepower Expert	Army Experience Gain: +0.05 daily Superior Firepower Doctrine: +15%	250
George S. Patton	Mobile Warfare Expert	Army Experience Gain: +0.05 daily Mobile Warfare Doctrine: +15%	250
DeWitt Clinton Ramsey	Naval Theorist	Naval Experience Gain: +0.05 daily Naval Doctrine Research Speed: +10%	150
Marc Mitscher	Naval Aviation Pioneer	Naval Experience Gain: +0.05 daily Base Strike Doctrine: +15%	250
Curtis LeMay	Victory Through Airpower	Air Experience Gain: +0.05 daily Strategic Destruction Doctrine: +15%	250
Harold McClelland	Air Warfare Theorist	Air Experience Gain: +0.05 daily Air Doctrine Research Speed: +10%	150
Robert Oppenheimer	Nuclear Scientist	Nuclear Research Speed: +15%	150
Robert H. Goddard	Rocket Scientist	Rocket Research Speed: +15%	150

Economy

Laws

1936

Conscription Law	Economy Law	Trade Law
Disarmed Nation 1% Recruitable population	Undisturbed Isolation 50% Consumer Goods factories –50% Factory construction speed –50% Dockyard construction speed +50% Factory (type) conversion cost –60% Fuel gain per oil –45% Fuel capacity +100% Agency upgrade time World tension limit (required for) +20% Join faction +20% Send volunteers +50% Lend-lease +75% Guarantee +100% Generate war-goal	Free Trade 80% Resources to market +10% Research speed +15% Factory/Dockyard output +15% Construction speed +40% Civilian intelligence to others +20% Navy intelligence to others

1939

Conscription Law	Economy Law	Trade Law
Volunteer Only 1.5% Recruitable population	Isolation 40% Consumer Goods factories –40% Factory construction speed –40% Dockyard construction speed +40% Factory (type) conversion cost –50% Fuel gain per oil –35% Fuel capacity +80% Agency upgrade time World tension limit (required for) +20% Join faction +20% Send volunteers +50% Guarantee +100% Generate war-goal	Free Trade 80% Resources to market +10% Research speed +15% Factory/Dockyard output +15% Construction speed +40% Civilian intelligence to others +20% Navy intelligence to others

Industry

Year	Military Factories	Naval Dockyards	Civilian Factories	Fuel Silos
1936	10	22	127 (-105)	0
1939	11	24	136 (-51)	1

Numbers in red indicate the number of civilian factories required to produce consumer goods, based on economy laws and the total number of military and civilian factories, rounded up.

The United States boasts, without a doubt, the largest construction capability of the major powers by 1936. However, due to the immense 80% consumer factory requirements by the country's national spirits, the U.S. only has 22 civilian factories available for construction. To fully exploit the U.S.'s economic potential, one has to go to war to enable the removal of The Great Depression modifier and to change the economic laws. Another undermining factor for the country's might is the low number of military factories, rendering its army very weak at the start.

Resources

Year	Oil	Aluminum	Rubber	Tungsten	Steel	Chromium
1936	846 (–677)	210 (–168)	0	153 (–122)	634 (–507)	2 (–2)
1939	1058 (–846)	262 (–210)	0	192 (–154)	792 (–634)	2 (–2)

Numbers in red indicate how many resources are reserved for export due to trade laws.

When it comes to resources, the Americans live in abundance. They have more than enough of  oil and  aluminum, as well as sufficient Steel, and will profit greatly from their exports in the game. However, they lack  rubber and  chromium and so these must be imported. 10 Rubber can be added through a unique national focus, and several prospecting decisions are available to expand  aluminum,  tungsten and  steel production as excavation technologies are researched.

One long-term strategic goal for the United States is to acquire Siamese rubber or Japanese chromium by controlling the respective provinces. Also, 634 steel looks like a lot, but when using only 20% of that under the Free trade law, the massive expansion of military production will lead to shortages by late 1939. Researching Resource gain efficiency can counteract this, but only to a certain point. The United States will either have to move away from free trade by around 1940 or use its massive reserve of civilian factories to trade for steel.

Military

The United States military of 1936 boasts the second-largest navy in the world, behind only the Royal Navy, but an army and air force hampered by limited manpower and shortages of equipment.

Army

Army

	Type	# 1936	# 1939
	Infantry	35	37
	Cavalry	1	1
	Light Tank	0	1
	Marines	0	2
	Total divisions	36	41
	Manpower used	345.10k	374.70k

In 1936, 19 of the infantry divisions belong to the National Guard. These are composed of 12 infantry battalions whilst the regular army divisions are composed of 9 battalions. Four infantry divisions are forward-deployed to the Philippines, Alaska, Puerto Rico and the Panama Canal, with the garrison brigades stationed across several Pacific islands. The rest of the army is scattered throughout the continental United States. The  Superior Firepower doctrine has been pre-selected.

Field Marshals

Name	Skill	ATK	DEF	PLN	LOG	Traits
Dwight D. Eisenhower	5	4	3	5	5	Cautious  Armor Officer  Politically Connected  Organizer  Logistics Wizard  Offensive Doctrine
Douglas MacArthur	4	6	3	5	2	Brilliant Strategist  Career Officer  Media Personality  Politically Connected  Offensive Doctrine

Generals

Name	Skill	ATK	DEF	PLN	LOG	Traits
George S. Patton	5	7	3	2	4	Reckless  Armor Officer  War Hero  Trickster  Panzer Leader
Omar Bradley	5	5	5	5	4	Brilliant Strategist  Cautious  Harsh Leader  Engineer
Mark Clark	4	5	3	2	3	Reckless  Infantry Officer
Courtney Hodges	4	4	3	2	4	Career Officer  Infantry Officer  Panzer Leader
Lucian Truscott	3	3	3	2	2	Cavalry Officer  Engineer  Commando
Walter Krueger	3	4	3	2	2	Brilliant Strategist  Career Officer  Armor Officer
Leslie McNair	3	1	2	4	2	Old Guard  Career Officer  Armor Officer
Leonard Gerow	3	3	2	2	3	Infantry Officer
Alexander Patch	3	3	2	2	3	Infantry Officer  Commando
William Simpson	3	2	4	2	2	Infantry Officer
J. Lawton Collins	3	3	2	3	2	Career Officer  Trickster
Maurice Rose	3	5	1	3	3	Brilliant Strategist  Reckless  Armor Officer
Geoffrey Keyes	2	2	2	2	1	Career Officer  Armor Officer
Lloyd Fredendall	2	3	3	1	2	Old Guard  Inflexible Strategist  Infantry Officer
Edward Brooks	2	2	1	2	2	Reckless  Armor Officer
Clarence Huebner	2	2	2	2	2	Old Guard  Harsh Leader
Oscar Griswold	2	2	1	2	2	Infantry Officer
Jonathan Wainwright	1	1	1	1	1
Russell Hartle	1	1	1	1	1	Infantry Officer
Joseph Stilwell	1	2	1	1	1	Career Officer  Harsh Leader  Infantry Officer  Politically Connected

Division composition list

Division	Name list	Support companies	Combat battalions
Infantry Division	Infantry	Artillery, Engineer	9x Infantry
National Guard Division	Infantry	Artillery, Engineer	12x Infantry
Garrison Brigade	Garrison	Engineer	3x Infantry
Cavalry Division	Cavalry	Cavalry Recon, Engineer	8x Cavalry
Mechanized Cavalry^	Cavalry	Motorized Recon, Engineer	2x Light Tank
Marine Brigade	Marine	Engineer	4x Marines
* marks a company or division that is removed in the 1939 start. ^ marks a company or division that is only available in the 1939 start.

Navy

Navy

	Type	# 1936	# 1939
	Carrier	3	5
	Battleship	15	15
	Heavy cruiser	15	18
	Light cruiser	12	20
	Destroyer	113	148
	Submarine	71	96
	Total ships	229	302
	Manpower used	139.05k	175.70k

In Man the Guns, the U.S. Navy in 1936 is one of the strongest navies in the game, beginning the 1936 scenario with a total of 229 vessels, emphasizing submarines over heavier ships. The US can build all Tier I vessels and produce Tier II vessels of all classes save Heavy Ships (Battleships, Battlecruisers). Much of this starting potential is hobbled by the London Naval Treaty, which disables a number of the more recent designs without first generating, then expanding Naval Experience to remove modules.

As of 1936 US naval yards are producing two New Orleans-class heavy cruisers, one Wichita-class heavy cruiser, two Yorktown-class carriers, 13 Farragut-class destroyers and one Porpoise-class submarine. The default Naval doctrine is set to Base Strike.

Admirals

Name	Skill	ATK	DEF	MNV	COR	Traits
Ernest King	5	4	3	3	6	Career Officer  Aviation Enthusiast  Caustic Personality  Blockade Runner  Superior Tactician
Chester W. Nimitz	5	3	3	5	5	Gentlemanly  Naval Lineage  Superior Tactician  Spotter  Blue Water Expert
William Halsey, Jr.	4	5	3	3	2	Bold  Aviation Enthusiast  Superior Tactician  Spotter
Raymond A. Spruance	4	4	3	3	3	Gentlemanly  Career Officer  Superior Tactician
Arleigh Burke	4	3	3	3	4	Old Guard  Bold  Fleet Protector  Superior Tactician
Frank Jack Fletcher	3	2	2	3	3	Gunnery Expert  Superior Tactician  Spotter
Harold Rainsford Stark	2	2	1	2	2	Cuts Corners  Blockade Runner  Spotter
Charles M. Cooke, Jr.	2	1	1	2	3	Career Officer

Naval units list

Type	Class	Hull	Engine	# 1936	1936	# 1939	1939	Design note
CV	Wasp^	1936 Carrier	Carrier I				1	3x Hangar Space, Anti-Air I, Secondary Battery II
CV	Yorktown	1936 Carrier	Carrier II		2	2		3x Hangar Space, Anti-Air I, Secondary Battery II
CV	Ranger*	1936 Carrier	Carrier I	1		1		3x Hangar Space, Anti-Air I
CV	Lexington*	Converted Battleship	Heavy I	2		2		3x Hangar Space, Anti-Air I, Secondary Battery I
BB	North Carolina^	1940 Heavy Ship	Heavy II					2x Heavy Battery III, Anti-Air I, 2x Dual-Purpose Secondary Battery, Battleship Armor II, Floatplane Catapult I
BB	Colorado	Early Heavy Ship	Heavy I	3		3		2x Heavy Battery II, 2x Anti-Air I, 2x Secondary Battery I, Battleship Armor II, Floatplane Catapult I
BB	Pennsylvania*	Early Heavy Ship	Heavy I	9		9		2x Heavy Battery I, 2x Anti-Air I, 2x Secondary Battery I, Battleship Armor II, Floatplane Catapult I
BB	New York*	Early Heavy Ship	Heavy I	3		3		2x Heavy Battery I, Anti-Air I, 2x Secondary Battery I, Battleship Armor I, Floatplane Catapult I
CA	Wichita	1936 Cruiser	Cruiser II		1	1		2x Heavy Cruiser Battery II, 2x Anti-Air I, Cruiser Armor III, Floatplane Catapult I
CA	New Orleans	1936 Cruiser	Cruiser I	5	2	7		2x Heavy Cruiser Battery II, 2x Anti-Air I, Secondary Battery I, Cruiser Armor II, Floatplane Catapult I
CA	Portland*	1936 Cruiser	Cruiser I	2		2		2x Heavy Cruiser Battery I, Anti-Air I, Secondary Battery I, Cruiser Armor II, Floatplane Catapult I
CA	Pensacola*	Early Cruiser	Cruiser I	8		8		2x Heavy Cruiser Battery I, Anti-Air I, Secondary Battery I, Cruiser Armor I, Floatplane Catapult I
CL	Brooklyn	1936 Cruiser	Cruiser II			8	1	3x Light Cruiser Battery II, 2x Anti-Air I, Secondary Battery I, Cruiser Armor III, Floatplane Catapult I
CL	Oglala	Early Cruiser	Cruiser I	2		2		Light Cruiser Battery I, Anti-Air I, Minelaying Rails
CL	Omaha*	Early Cruiser	Cruiser I	10		10		2x Light Cruiser Battery I, Anti-Air I, Cruiser Armor I
DD	Benson & Gleaves^	1940 Destroyer	Light II					Anti-Air I, Dual-Purpose Secondary Battery, Depth Charge I, 2x Torpedo Launcher II, Sonar II
DD	Sims^	1936 Destroyer	Light II			28	7	Anti-Air I, Dual-Purpose Secondary Battery, Depth Charge I, 2x Torpedo Launcher I, Sonar I
DD	Farragut	Early Destroyer	Light II	8	13	32		Light Battery II, Anti-Air I, 2x Torpedo Launcher I, Depth Charge I, Sonar I
DD	Clemson*	Early Destroyer	Light I	105		88		Light Battery I, Anti-Air I, 2x Torpedo Launcher I, Depth Charge I
SS	Salmon^	1936 Submarine	Submarine II			12	4	2x Torpedo Tubes II
SS	Porpoise	1936 Submarine	Submarine II	3	10			Torpedo Tubes I
SS	Barracuda*	1936 Submarine	Submarine I	9		9		Torpedo Tubes I
SS	S*	Early Submarine	Submarine I	59		65		Torpedo Tubes I
* marks a variant as "outdated". ^ marks a variant that is only available in the 1939 start. Ship type terminology: CV - Carrier SHBB - Super-heavy battleship BB - Battleship BC - Battlecruiser CA - Heavy cruiser CL - Light cruiser DD - Destroyer SS - Submarine

Without Man the Guns

The U.S. Navy is one of the strongest in the game. It starts in 1936 with a total of 235 ships, the same amount as the UK but with a heavier emphasis on submarines, and slightly fewer capital ships. The United States can build all Tier I vessels and is also able to produce the Tier II Ranger-class aircraft carriers, Brooklyn-class light cruisers and Porpoise-class submarines. At the start date of 1936, their naval yards are building a Portland-class heavy cruiser, a Porpoise-class submarine and 13 Farragut-class destroyers. The Base Strike doctrine has been pre-selected.

Ship classes of the United States Navy (no )
Type	Class	Amount	In Production	Tech
CV	Yorktown Class	0	0	Carrier II (Upgraded variant, +1 all parameters)
CV	Ranger Class	1	0	Carrier II
CV	Lexington Class	2	0	Carrier I
BB	Colorado Class	3	0	Battleship I (Upgraded variant, +4 guns, +3 all other parameters)
BB	New Mexico Class	5	0	Battleship I (Upgraded variant, +2 all parameters)
BB	Pennsylvania Class	4	0	Battleship I (Upgraded variant, +1 all parameters)
BB	New York Class	3	0	Battleship I
BC	Lexington Class	0	0	Battlecruiser I
CA	Portland Class	7	1	Heavy Cruiser I (Upgraded variant, +2 all parameters)
CA	Pensacola Class	8	0	Heavy Cruiser I
CL	Brooklyn Class	0	0	Light Cruiser II
CL	Omaha Class	10	0	Light Cruiser I
DD	Farragut Class	8	13	Destroyer I (Upgraded variant, +3 all parameters)
DD	Clemson Class	107	0	Destroyer I*
SS	Porpoise Class	9	1	Submarine II
SS	Barracuda Class	3	0	Submarine I (Upgraded variant, +2 all parameters)
SS	S Class	65	0	Submarine I
	Convoy	400	0

Air Force

Air Force

	Type	# 1936	# 1939
	Close air support	168	261
	Fighter	452	278
	Naval bomber	144	260
	Heavy fighter	0	168
	Tactical bomber	204	204
	Strategic bomber	0	72
	Total planes	968	1243
	Manpower used	23.44k	36.62k

As of Man the Guns, the air force in 1936 consists of 968 aircraft, including 384 Curtiss P-1 Hawk fighters, 96 Northrop A-17 CAS aircraft, 108 PBY Catalina naval bombers and 204 Douglas B-18 Bolo tactical bombers. The carriers operate 68 Grumman FF 'Fifi' fighters, 72 Northrop BT CAS aircraft and 68 Douglas TBD Devastator naval bombers. The fighters and tactical bombers are of an inter-war design. There is an ongoing production line for the 'Fifi'.

Military Command Staff

Chief of Army

Candidate	Type	Effects + requirements	Cost ()
Douglas MacArthur	Army Morale (Expert)	Division Recovery Rate: +8% Douglas MacArthur is not the current country leader	150
George Marshall	Army Drill (Expert)	Division Training Time: -10%	150
Dwight D. Eisenhower	Army Offense (Expert)	Division Attack: +10%	150
Walter Krueger	Army Planning (Expert)	Planning Speed: +10% Has completed focus War Plans Division	150

Chief of Navy

Candidate	Type	Effects + requirements	Cost ()
Ernest King	Naval Reformer (Expert)	Naval Experience Gain: +10%	150
Chester W. Nimitz	Commerce Raiding (Expert)	Convoy Raiding Efficiency: +15%	150
William Halsey Jr.	Naval Aviation (Expert)	Naval Air Attacks from Carriers: +6% Naval Air Targeting from Carriers: +7% Naval Air Agility from Carriers: +8%	150

Chief of Air Force

Candidate	Type	Effects + requirements	Cost ()
Henry Arnold	Air Reformer (Genius)	Air Experience Gain: +10%	150
Carl Spaatz	Night Operations (Expert)	Night Operations Penalty: −20%	150
George Kenney	Air Safety (Expert)	Air Accidents Chance: −10%	150
Charles Lindbergh	Pilot Training (Genius)	Air Wing Training Experience Gain: +15% Fighter: Fuel Usage: -10% Heavy Fighter: Fuel Usage: -10% Has completed focus Send Lindbergh to Germany	50

Military High Command

Candidate	Type	Effects + requirements	Cost ()
Courtney Hodges	Commando (Expert)	Special Forces Attack: +15% Special Forces Defense: +15%	150
Joseph Stilwell	Army Logistics (Expert)	Division Attrition: −8% Not: Joseph Stilwell sent to China	150
Mark W. Clark	Infantry (Expert)	Infantry Attack: +10% Infantry Defense: +15%	150
Jimmy Doolittle	Strategic Bombing (Expert)	Strategic Bombing: +5% Bomber attack: +2% Bomber defense: +2% Bomber agility: +2%	150
John K. Cannon	Close Air Support (Expert)	Close air support attack: +3% Close air support defense: +3% Close air support agility: +3%	150
Claire Lee Chennault	Tactical Bombing (Expert)	Ground support: +15%	150
Raymond Spruance	Naval Air Defense (Expert)	Naval AA Attack: +15%	150
Frank Jack Fletcher	Carriers (Expert)	Sortie efficiency: +15%	150
Thomas C. Kinkaid	Amphibious Assault (Expert)	Amphibious Invasion Speed: +10%	150

Strategies and Guides

The below is one of many player suggested strategies for United States. Bear in mind, due to the dynamic nature of the game, it may unfold differently for other players.

Waking the Sleeping Giant

 United States has riches in resources that are the envy of any nation. However, it must find a way to get past crippling economic limitations caused by The Great Depression which result in shortages in manpower, reduces political power and limits production. They also start with only 10 Military factories so building land forces will be slow. Patience will be needed to overcome those obstacles.

To overcome the effects of the great depression, as early as possible go down the WPA line in the national focuses list. Please note that passing each stage, starting with Agricultural Adjustment Act, there is a 230 day wait period to pass the next stage. That means that you can pass three other national focuses and then will have to wait 20 days for the next stage to be available. It's worth the delay even though you are not continually running a national focus.

The production limitations affect naval construction. Early construction should be a mixture Infrastructure along with civilian factories for the first two years. Repeat this cycle until the production issues can be solved and to grow your economy. The player will need to trade for Rubber and Chromium to start building battleships and carriers. Players may wish to cease submarine production as their fleet is quite extensive at the start of the game.

Early research should include Destroyer II while relegating existing Destroyers and light cruisers to small fleets, perhaps 1 CL to 15 DD, to serve as flotillas for  Convoy Escort in safer zones. The older DDs will not be able to last long as screens against the Japanese Fleets. In the Atlantic the older Destroyers may be used as screens as combat with other fleets will be less likely. Build two main fleets in the Atlantic around battleship/heavy cruiser units and another around USS Ranger. These fleets do not need to be as large as the fleets in the Pacific. Do not include Submarines in these fleets.

In the Pacific, three main fleets should center on the Asiatic Fleet in the  Philippines, a Hawaiian Fleet and one on the West Coast. Assign your best Admirals to those fleets, especially the Philippines. The goal is to make carrier groups of 2 CV, 3 BB, 4 CA, 4 CL and 15 DD. Try to avoid building larger fleets than that, or you will not be able to guard enough areas, South China/Philippines/Bismarck Seas plus enough to move onto new areas in an island-hopping campaign.

By the time the war starts you may have four or more of these fleets created. It should be more than sufficient especially if you have a mixture of level 2 ships in your Task Forces. A second reserve fleet may be needed in the Philippines to combat losses of ships and swell the ranks of the Asiatic Fleet.

Do not try to train troops until sufficient equipment is produced.

Preparation in the Pacific

When able, begin building air bases in the Pacific to ward off naval invasions. 115 each of strategic bombers and heavy fighters should do. Suggested locations would be Midway, Attu Island and Guam. Radar stations and coastal defences should be constructed as well.  Japan will especially attempt to take Guam but the naval bombers and defences should keep them at bay. Keeping a naval presence there is not suggested until the player plans to invade as Japan has their own significant air presence there.

While at peace it is a good strategy to occasionally send naval units to scout the Japanese islands to see which they are defending. If a single commander is chosen for all the defence brigades in the Pacific then extra units will be able to take those islands to save on the amount of time needed to take control in the Pacific. Wake Island and Palmyra make good staging areas for those invasions. A small amphibious force of say 9 divisions should be created to take the defended islands when war comes. Splitting them into small groups allows for faster planning and multiple assaults. It should only be necessary to leave a garrison on islands with an airbase or urban area.

The  Philippines is the lynchpin of the Pacific. A buildup of coast defences near ports, radar, anti-air, and a large buildup of strategic bombers and heavy fighters are needed to guard the South China and Philippine Seas against naval incursion. This will have the added effect of bringing the Philippines to direct autonomy. Keep in mind the Philippines will be generating units for its defence which will stop when annexed, although annexation will allow the player to build radar stations.

Once the war begins Japan will have their own formidable air presence in both the Philippine and South China Seas. Stay in port unless necessary. The problem in the Philippine Sea can be taken care of by taking the island of Peleliu to the southeast. Be careful when launching a naval assault from Manila as it will not show the route going through the South China Sea. If that portion of the trip is not defended an entire convoy of troops could be lost. Try to protect these convoys with 2x the number of DD than the number of divisions. It is necessary to move newly-trained divisions to defend the Philippines.

It is recommended to use your carrier and naval forces to help defend one's land. More divisions will have to be based, too. Note that this may NOT ward off formidable invasions.

Avoiding the Pacific War

As of the 1.7 Hydra patch (it is not clear whether this is achievable in an earlier patch), the player can avoid going to war with  Japan entirely if one so wishes.

The usual war between the U.S. and Japan begins with the Japanese Focus Secure the Philippines, upon the completion of which Japan gets a war goal against the  Philippines. The player can reduce the autonomy of the Philippines beforehand by building factories and/or sending lend-lease, and later annex them using the puppet system.

This can be done much earlier than the aforementioned Japanese Focus under historical AI, given the industrial capacity that the U.S. possesses. This way, Japan will get a war goal against the non-existent Philippines and therefore cannot declare war, thus allowing the U.S to focus entirely on the war in Europe.

It should also be noticed that this strategy does not stop Japan from declaring a war against the Allies(namely, it gets war goals against  Dutch East Indies and  British Malaya through the focus Strike on the Southern Resource Area), which the U.S. is usually a member of. However, The player can simply stay out of this war by refusing any call to arms.

Turning the U.S Red

While the US's democratic path is powerful, due to it's slow start usually requiring the player to, at the earliest, wait until the Panay Incident, the player can get to war much faster if it opts to abandon Democracy and embrace an alternate idea - in this case, Communism. Siding with Stalin and/or Mao is far more interesting of a game, and in the case of Mao, can hilariously derail the Sino-Japanese war by forcing the nationalists and Japanese to adjust to a third faction entering if one takes "Secure China".

First, one should do only industrial/electronics research up until after the Second American Civil war - while some military research every now and then is fine, what you research will be shared by the rebels (researching Fighter 1s is fine, but stick mostly to industrial and electronics research). Second, do not build any factories in the 11 states that will form the Confederacy - the states in question were the same ones that revolted in the original American Civil War (the Carolinas, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, and Tennessee). While building a few factories there is fine for the missions to get congressional support for the focuses that require it, focus the majority of your development in the North.

The biggest threat to you in this war is not the Confederacy, but rather, the threat of running out of oil - train 10 cavalry units, station 5 near Texas, and 5 near Virginia - the former will be used to rush the victory points near Texas (securing the oil supplies) and the latter to rush the capitol (which has a very good chance of being Richmond). In addition to these 10 cavalry units, divide up your starting army into 1 group of 24 units (station these along the border from the coast, along the Maryland-Virginia border, to the end of Tennessee on the same line), and 1 group of 12 units (station these along the Texas border).

For focuses, Rush the Agricultural Adjustment Act, hire the silent workhorse (you can ditch him later, but for now, we need Political Power) then take Suspend the Persecution and Reach out to the Wares Group. Hire Earl Browder to begin flipping to communism. While there are two branches that can lead to the US going to the inevitable Second American Civil War, you will have to take Union Representation Act to re-admit the Confederate States to the Union anyways, so go down that path. When you get the event about protests, don't back down - if you have been doing Small Lobbying Effort as soon as it's available, you'll be able to afford the hit in Congressional support.

Afterwards, rush Guarantee the American Dream - this will prevent the Midwest from forming a neutral block of states. Afterwards, take Worker Management Act to get rid of what's left of the Great Depression debuff. Save up at least 150 political power - thanks to the civil war, you'll be able to get rid of Undisturbed Isolation (if you flip to Communism during or shortly before the civil war, you could even go to War Economy) - if you take Selective Service Act, you can also go from Disarmed Nation to Limited Conscription (if you don't wish to take that focus, just save up 450 political power).

While you'll have removed the economic debuffs by the time you complete Re-Integration, you can still take Federal Housing Act for additional building slots if you haven't flipped to communism (you'll be able to bypass Fair Labor Standards Act thanks to the focuses you can access after Union Representation Act).

When the war kicks off, change your economic laws (and recruitment laws if you wish), then start pushing downwards - during the war, every time you capture a state's victory points, you'll gain 2 divisions. Either incorporate them or use them in your existing forces; just keep on pushing. Eventually, you should be able to capitulate the Confederates - annex everything. Re-integrate all the states as soon as you can, and flip to communism through "Democratic Socialism".

Decide if you want to Secure China or join the USSR - if you choose the former, either wait until Communist China forms it's own faction, or instead, take the focus "Hemisphere Defense" to form your own faction and then take "Secure China" - unless you begin flipping other countries in South America communist, the only other members you'll have are the Phillipines and Paraguay , although since you won't have anyone else guaranteeing them, you could also just declare and puppet all other nations (you can also boost ideology if you wish).

If one opts to join the USSR, take the focus "Unholy Alliance" - while the USSR will accept your request to join the ComIntern without the focus, if you take the focus, you'll be able to Join the Unions, which will annex them if they are more than 80% of the way to capitulation (even if not in the war - and if you join the unions but aren't in the war, whoever was close to capitulating the USSR will be pushed back to their starting borders; this can make it hilarious against the Axis).

While you can liberate the Phillipines through a focus, one should hold off until the Phillipines flips to communism - do this through the "Socialist Education" decision. After they flip, go ahead and liberate them.

By this time, you should have gotten the Panay Incident if you haven't already - while the historic thing would be to demand compensation, as we're already derailing history, instead use it to gain a war goal. Use either the Phillipines (if you decided to Secure China) or Vladivostok (if you decided to join the ComIntern) to naval invade mainland Japan. Because Japan is likely still involved in China, they won't have many forces in the Home Islands.

You can capitulate the Japanese and puppet them to have two of the most powerful navies at your control. Feel free to give Communist China Manchukuo to prepare them for their inevitable war with Nationalist China. With the threat in the Pacific dealt with, you can now focus on spreading the word of Marx in the European theater.

If you're playing single player and wish to go for Georgia on my Mind, take Unholy Alliance, and wait for the Germans to come close to capitulating the Soviets, but don't join the war - when the decision is available, Join the Unions; as you're not at war with Germany, you'll force them back to their borders. Then, take Monroe Doctrine and take the decision to ask for the British territories - if they agree, congrats, you get the achievement!

If not, station your fleet in the Baltic Sea and your troops in West Russia, and use the war goal to declare on the British and ask the Germans for Military Access - as you're at peace when this happens and are fighting a common enemy, you'll get it. Stage naval invasions from Wilhelmshaven to Hull or Newcastle, and the British should go down quickly. As you only really need South Georgia, odds are that you should be able to take the island (which the Germans will likely not take unless they can't take anything else).

If you wish to use this to go for the Arsenal of Democracy achievement, you must flip back to Democracy, but you don't have to worry about that - the US's Democratic Advisor, Harold L. Ickes, can be hired at any point, so after you get ahold of the required number of Military Factories (if you can join the Unions and annex Japan, you should have more than enough or at the very least, enough building spots to do so.

Alternatively if you manage to annex the 4 Major European Powers in a peace deal, you should have more than enough), hire Ickes and flip back to Democracy. Note that while the US can flip through having a high enough ideology, they can only do so in the regularly scheduled elections, meaning that if you don't have enough support by 1944, you'll have to wait until you get to 1948 to flip (as such, fire Earl Browder once you flip to communism).

Achievements

Arsenal of Democracy

As the U.S.A., have more than 300 military factories.

Georgia On My Mind

As the U.S.A., own and fully control all three Georgias.

History Repeated Itself

As the U.S.A., Win against the Confederate States. Again.

Team America

As the U.S.A., drop a nuclear bomb on Paris.

To Arms in Dixie!

As the U.S.A., start a new civil war as the South.

Underpaid, Undersexed, and Under Eisenhower

As the U.S.A., assume faction leader of the Allies, and have over 50 expeditionary divisions from the United Kingdom.

Bugs

When playing a non-historical focus game without the Man The Guns DLC, the U.S.A will almost always hire the Fascist Demagogue and Communist Revolutionary political advisors, despite both advisors being mutually exclusive to each other and only accessible to players with the Man The Guns DLC. This causes the country to frequently swap between Fascism and Communism when playing with historical focus off.

Countries

Europe

Albania Austria Belgium Bulgaria Czechoslovakia Denmark Estonia Finland France Free France Vichy France German Reich Kingdom of Greece Kingdom of Hungary Ireland Italy Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Nationalist Spain Republican Spain Romania Slovakia Soviet Union Sweden Switzerland Turkey Republic of Ukraine United Kingdom Yugoslavia

North America

Dominion of Canada Costa Rica Cuba Dominican Republic El Salvador Guatemala Haiti Honduras Mexico Nicaragua Panama United States

South America

Argentina Bolivia Brazil Chile Colombia Ecuador Paraguay Peru Uruguay Venezuela

Asia	Afghanistan Bhutan British Malaya British Raj China Communist China Dutch East Indies Guangxi Clique Iran Iraq Japan Manchukuo Mengkukuo Mongolia Nepal Oman Philippines Saudi Arabia Shanxi Siam Sinkiang Tannu Tuva Tibet Xibei San Ma Yemen Yunnan

Africa

Angola Sultanate of Aussa Botswana Kingdom of Egypt Ethiopia Liberia South Africa

Oceania

Australia Melanesian Federation New Zealand Tahiti