Why bother fighting China as Japan?

[Malenthas]

Why fight China if you are Japan?

The entire country has minimal resources.

I've been considering a Japan playthrough where I am friendly to China and just concentrate on the resource rich areas like Singapore, East Indies, India, etc.

Any reason why Japan needs to take China?

[wei270]

yeah it is true, i was playing with the AI and high difficult setting, it turn out giving china 30% attack and defence on home terrirtoy is too high, and they beat me as japan all the way back to korea.

then ww2 starts........ and i REAslize china really didn't matter it is just there to give japan a better start. the real fight is with the Americans.

[General WVPM]

Irl invading china made more sense than ingame.

Ingame you tend to do it because of history. If you want, you can just invade guanxi and grab the resources.

Irl it is more complex. Japan and others wanted to gain and hold influence over china as china has a huge population that produces and consumes products. Also beating up china grants immense prestige.

Japan didn't really attack china. The japanese generals started and escalated incidents that allowed them to occupy parts of china. It was only in 1938, after taking nanking that the japanese government realised there would be no quick peace. It would be a total war. The japanese government had not planned to conquer china. They hoped to simply gain more concessions or puppet china.

There were other ideas for expansion. Most notably the idea to conquer a part of the russian far east. This idea was dropped as the russians beat the japanese in the border skirmishes.

[AdmiralPiett]

General WVPM の投稿を引用：

Irl invading china made more sense than ingame.

Ingame you tend to do it because of history. If you want, you can just invade guanxi and grab the resources.

Irl it is more complex. Japan and others wanted to gain and hold influence over china as china has a huge population that produces and consumes products. Also beating up china grants immense prestige.

Japan didn't really attack china. The japanese generals started and escalated incidents that allowed them to occupy parts of china. It was only in 1938, after taking nanking that the japanese government realised there would be no quick peace. It would be a total war. The japanese government had not planned to conquer china. They hoped to simply gain more concessions or puppet china.

There were other ideas for expansion. Most notably the idea to conquer a part of the russian far east. This idea was dropped as the russians beat the japanese in the border skirmishes.

You're almost correct. The Marco Polo Bridge incident fully kicked off total war between Japan and China in 1937, before then it was isolated skirmishes and escalations dating back to 1932. To say "japan didn't really attack china" or "they didn't commit to the war until 1938 after taking nanking" is simply incorrect.

[Casey]

If you capture all of China you get a ton of metal resources you need + manpower + room to start adding more and more factories. You also gain invaluable XP, especially for air and army. You can do all this before engaging with the Soviets or Allies, too. From there, you have a massive foothold to wage war in India, Russia, or the money islands.

[Diddy Rizzlington]

because japan is the rightful master of china, why should japan not have a right to colonize china when the british and the french colonized half the planet

[wei270]

because now that the British and french have already colonized half the planet, they don't want anyone to do it as they have done it. no one want completion.

[JinxHeartnet]

Malenthas の投稿を引用：

Why fight China if you are Japan?

The entire country has minimal resources.

I've been considering a Japan playthrough where I am friendly to China and just concentrate on the resource rich areas like Singapore, East Indies, India, etc.

Any reason why Japan needs to take China?

Clearly you've never checked Guanxi Clique's resources.

[Bored Peon]

Malenthas の投稿を引用：

Why fight China if you are Japan?

- It is there.
- Farm combat xp
- Farm division awards
- Use the war to mine the Pacific ahead of time.
- Your inner dictator tells you to
- Insane amount of manpower
- You forgot your tickets for the Great Wall of China tour
- Prevent Chinese civil wars
- Keep other countries from getting the country after China joins them and loses
- You want to ride the Orient Express for free
- To troll the US by "accidentally" sinking the USS Panay to bait them into early war.

Ok, seriously, if you have to ask for a reason of why do it then you aint much of a strategist and should probably go back to playing Call of Doodie.

[Luey Hewis]

Having China gives you a big manpower resource. It's useful to go after the Soviets using Chinese spam. Using Chinese divisions helps immensely.

[JinxHeartnet]

Shaboi の投稿を引用：

Having China gives you a big manpower resource. It's useful to go after the Soviets using Chinese spam. Using Chinese divisions helps immensely.

Fighting the Soviets via Siberia, that ought to be fun...

[JDouglasBarson]

I just played Japan a few times. Soviet Union is actually easier if you want to use special forces. China requires using artillery with CAS which is not very useful after taking China. Not really seeing a big advantage to the manpower. You don't need a very large army as Japan. The manpower would be useful in Europe where you need to create large fronts.

[Bored Peon]

JDouglasBarson の投稿を引用：

The manpower would be useful in Europe where you need to create large fronts.

Germany with it's 800k manpower deficit for garrison in Europe, lol.

[HB]

Malenthas の投稿を引用：

Why fight China if you are Japan?

The entire country has minimal resources.

I've been considering a Japan playthrough where I am friendly to China and just concentrate on the resource rich areas like Singapore, East Indies, India, etc.

Any reason why Japan needs to take China?

You can play the game to explore alt history outcomes from different choices.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Forgotten-Ally-Chinas-World-1937-1945/dp/061889425X
“The escalation that Japan had to go through in the following years because of Chinese resistance would never have happened. That means no Pearl Harbor because without the escalation of Japanese attacks on China you don’t get the desperate hunger for resources that leads ultimately to the oil embargo and President Roosevelt’s decisions in 1940 and 1941. And if you don’t have Pearl Harbor, you don’t have an Asian war that can then be joined with the European war.”

[HB]

AdmiralPiett の投稿を引用：

You're almost correct. The Marco Polo Bridge incident fully kicked off total war between Japan and China in 1937, before then it was isolated skirmishes and escalations dating back to 1932.

Your not correct, anf should refrain from posting false history.

Japan invaded and took Manchuria in 1931. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1921-1936/mukden-incident Japan never declared war on China, and China never recognised it was in a war with Japan. Maybe read a history book or two?.

AdmiralPiett の投稿を引用：

To say "japan didn't really attack china" or "they didn't commit to the war until 1938 after taking nanking" is simply incorrect.

Except books on the subject detail Japan mil strength used in China in 37 at c600k, rising to 900k in 1938 ( along with Imperial HQ takinga leap forward to end the conflict in 38 https://www.jstor.org/stable/1985526 )and over a million in 1939.

[HB]

bisp の投稿を引用：

It’s a person trying to get more knowledge and you’re being a snobbish weirdo.

Correct, its the limit of his abilities.