Soviet Union National Focus Path

[Mr. Poseidon]

Greetings everyone, let me start by saying that I am not experienced with any Hoi titles before this game and I been playing around the game for some hours now and it's mainly defensive france and trying to survive that way. Recently I been intrested in playing Soviet Union but their focus tree is a little complicated for me with the Great Purge focus and anti-fascist diplomacy which takes 210 days if I recall right. So when I am playing the game as them I don't when should I get what focus as I do in France. Can anyone give me any path I should take on national focus as Soviets? Thanks in advance.

[Yaldabaoth]

If you are playing a more conservative style (read: historically), get Great Purge right away. There will be tough penalties on your army but this way they should be gone before you get attacked by Germany. Then you want to go towards one of the extra research slots on the left side. I personally like Positive Heroism far more than Collectivist Propaganda. Simply because it gives you access to Konstantin Rokossovsky, best guy ever (btw. Don't purge him!). Then go for claims in the baltics, bessarabia etc. Once you have these focusses begin justifying war goals on these countries, that is how you activate their surrender. After that just survive against Germany.

[Mr. Poseidon]

Thanks for the advice, what about construction, I heard I should build solely Civilan factories for the first years because of pact with germany is this correct?

[Illusion]

Originally posted by (SoL) Handsome Jack:

Thanks for the advice, what about construction, I heard I should build solely Civilan factories for the first years because of pact with germany is this correct?

Correct. And please note: As soviet you get a -10% malus on construction speed due to "Home of the Revolution". Technically you can purge up until 1938: When the fourth international is founded and trotzky can come for stalin. And little advice for after war finland: Take claimed territory, puppet the rest. The event is great~

[SupremeChairman]

Originally posted by Yaldabaoth:

If you are playing a more conservative style (read: historically), get Great Purge right away. There will be tough penalties on your army but this way they should be gone before you get attacked by Germany. Then you want to go towards one of the extra research slots on the left side. I personally like Positive Heroism far more than Collectivist Propaganda. Simply because it gives you access to Konstantin Rokossovsky, best guy ever (btw. Don't purge him!). Then go for claims in the baltics, bessarabia etc. Once you have these focusses begin justifying war goals on these countries, that is how you activate their surrender. After that just survive against Germany.

uhhh revining this thread, whats good about the purge?

[BetterBite]

Originally posted by SupremeChairman:

Originally posted by Yaldabaoth:

If you are playing a more conservative style (read: historically), get Great Purge right away. There will be tough penalties on your army but this way they should be gone before you get attacked by Germany. Then you want to go towards one of the extra research slots on the left side. I personally like Positive Heroism far more than Collectivist Propaganda. Simply because it gives you access to Konstantin Rokossovsky, best guy ever (btw. Don't purge him!). Then go for claims in the baltics, bessarabia etc. Once you have these focusses begin justifying war goals on these countries, that is how you activate their surrender. After that just survive against Germany.

uhhh revining this thread, whats good about the purge?

Prevents civil war and the return of trotsky. One extra note is to head for anti capitalist diplomacy instead and annex some of the middle east, this is 100% recommended if you going with historical ai on as the Molotov Ribbentrop pact auto gives you the baltic, bessarabia claims etc.

[emcdunna]

Soviets start with tons of resources, manpower, and territory.

What you need most is research and factories. Build fricken factories like crazy. Invade places early (before 25% world tension, UK can't block you) to get their factories (as opposed to Germany for example, which needs to invade places for resources moreso than factories).

I also recommend trying to ignore/make peace with Japan. You got so much to do and fighting japan will suck.

[Valar Morghulis]

Well I annexd Poland in 1937. What to do next? ._.

[emcdunna]

Oh I wouldn't recommend trying to hold all of poland vs germany. You don't have the time to dig in and build enough forts. Instead focus on terrain. Defend the eastern side of rivers. Dig in. Build forts. Lead the Germans into the huge marshland in central poland (and avoid it yourself!)

Counter attack with heavy tanks. As ussr, you'll run out of tungsten quickly, even though you have a lot to start with. You have even more chromium however, so heavy tanks will actually be easier to support. I like making guards rifle divisions which have extra artillery and 2 battalions of heavy tanks attached. These are your break through units to hit the hardest on the attack.

Also I think it's very important to convert old tanks to tank destroyers or SPGs. You will have to change your division formulas to account for this (replacing light tanks with mediums, SPG's, or TD's). Note the converting can be done insanely fast and turns outdated equipment into niche but effective tools.

Against germany is one of the biggest times to use Anti tank guns and tank destroyers. I think 1 at battalion per infantry division is good, and one tank destroyer per motorized/tank division is also good. You don't want to lose ground to enemy tanks, especially your line of forts.

[Valar Morghulis]

Hmm.. i guess that sounds good. Well I dont know if they start a war at 1939 against me, or if they wait until 1941, else I dont think they'll manage to fight against me and Allies.

Gonna dig myself in and build bunkers all they way down the river.

[emcdunna]

Germany usually goes poland first, the second it takes poland it invades belgium/netherlands/france, and the second that's done, it starts justifying on ussr. So the longer france/poland last, the longer u have. You could try sending volunteers to france, or a pre-emptive war with Germany before they defeat france could work.

It's just that the ussr starts with few factories or research slots for a major nation, so if germany has taken most of poland and france and then comes after you, they might have 300+ factories total whereas you might only have around 200. That's a serious problem.

I'd also recommend as ussr to just rush invade lots of people in 1936-1938, especially the baltics and middle east. The allies rarely declare war on you for fighting turkey, iraq, afghanistan, Iran, etc. These places are EXTREMELY mountainous but do have a couple more factories and some oil (which you don't need but you can export)

I also focus heavily on rifles and support equipment to start, switching most of those factories to tanks and planes in 1938. Support equipment never gets outdated so stock pile it quick, and you seriously don't want to run out of rifles for your men.

Also don't appoint any political advisors till after the purge so you don't waste political power buying them and then losing them.

[Valar Morghulis]

Well.. didnt know that you're going to lose advisors. Waited with the purge because I invaded Poland before Germany would do it. Well I guess there are still 2 years left.

Maybe they invade France first now before declaring on me.

[JDouglasBarson]

If I remember that Soviets invade poland, then Germany will declare on Soviet. I think Germany does it early because the other focus are bypass. Oh yeah, Germany does the anti-comintern then the blatic states and countries like Hungry, Romania, etc will join the war.

[emcdunna]

Originally posted by JDouglasBarson:

If I remember that Soviets invade poland, then Germany will declare on Soviet. I think Germany does it early because the other focus are bypass. Oh yeah, Germany does the anti-comintern then the blatic states and countries like Hungry, Romania, etc will join the war.

Yeah tanking poland early can REALLY hurt your as USSR especially since almost all of polands factories are in the western side, which is what you'll lose first to Germany.

I would seriously put 100% of your men on this front and dig in behind rivers with as many forts and artillery/AT guns as you can, including your baltic borders and romanian border too. Then focus on air support and heavy tanks to save you from the onslaught.

[Commissar]

My soviet strategy:

MAKE SURE FOCUSES ARE SET TO HISTORICAL. Ignore tanks aside from mediums, which will be used for infantry support. Start off by taking the great purge. Build loads of civilian factories. Research basic engineering tools or whatever the correct name is, light tanks 2, and basic anti tank. When those are done get concentrated industry, close air support (if not already unlocked I forgot, if you start off with just tactical bombers then switch those to close air support when you unlock them), better fighters, and logistics company. If germany asks for a research pact accept and make your next research Medium Tanks. As better guns, engineering equipment, etc become non ahead of time research them, otherwise your choice. Get 10 factories making inf equipment, 5 on support, 5 on artillery, 2 on motorised, 3 on fighters, 3 on close air support/tactical bombers, 3 on strategic bombers. When things like anti tank, medium tanks etc get unlocked add them to your production lines. Assign spare 5 (?) factories as you like. Convert all your divisions to infantry. Try and merge your fleets into your baltic one, except for the black sea one which you can keep there. Set them all to convoy raiding in baltic/black seas. Put 3 dockyards on battleships, 2 on light cruisers, and 1 on destroyers, and have them deploy to your baltic fleet. Just put all of your divisions on a few generals and set them to have 1 general with most of your troops on poland, a general with 2/5 that amount of troops on finland, and 3 generals with 1/5 that amount on each of the baltic states. Blob your airforce into a single airbase with them set in units of 100 planes. Then split every one of these units in half and set their max reinforcement to 100 planes. Assign your fighters and close air support/tactical bombers to your polish front, and set your strategic bombers to prioritise airfields but do nothing yet. Once great purge is finished grab the five year plan and military buildup focuses, and then get Collectivist Propaganda and its related focuses (get the research slot first). When the spanish civil war kicks off convert 5 units back to tanks and send them as volunteers. Try cut off the nationalist capital from the rest of the country, after that pocket is surrounded send them west from madrid in a line towards portugal. Meanwhile have your army start exercising. When the civil war is over convert the tanks back and change the infantry template to be like this: 7 inf, 1 art, 1 anti tank, support artillery, support engineer, support recon, support anti tank, and then get 1 medium tank and support logistics as you unlock them. Switch around your production lines so weapons that have their requirements filled have less factories, and weapons you are severely lacking have more. When germany asks for Molotov-Ribbentrop pact accept and justify on your claimed countries in this order: Baltic states (in order of most factories to least), Finland, Romania. Romania and the baltics will surrender, annex their land. Meanwhile Finland will want to fight. DO NOT ACCEPT SURRENDER. Fully annex them at the end. Once Poland has fallen to germany start building lots of military factories, cancel any excess civilian ones that aren't already in production. Set your strategic bombers to bomb germany with equal amounts of bombers in every air zone. Don't make them bomb anywhere else. Set all your troops to the german frontline, as well as their allies if they have any (usually hungary/romania). Non-aggression pact japan if possible. When axis attacks stay on defencive and move your industry to the urals. When their manpower and equipment start to run out attack them and push them back to berlin. Take as much land as possible in the peace conference.

[emcdunna]

I like this but I think you should definitely overbuild a stockpile of rifles and support equipment first, instead of producing a steady supply of (what will soon be) outdated tanks and planes. Instead I like to use all the time I have (till June 1940 at least) to first build infantry equipment, support, etc. And then later switch to heavily (15 - 20 factories each) build tanks and planes once I have the good models unlocked.

I also think (as any faction) focusing on the industry and land/air doctrine research early is essential, and then afterwards researching better equipment as it stops being ahead of time later on.