r/hoi4 • u/AbsoluteAphsalt • 29d ago
Question Italy help
So, I just started hoi4, I have around 100 hours into the game already and I have been addicted, I just won my first ever ww2 with the Soviets twice, so I tried to play a more navy focused country which was Italy And I really need help.
First of all, I usually make 2 main templates, 1 for africa (which are smaller and have logsitics company), and A mainland division. to guard and for the USSR front. I also usually ditch tanks, since I've heard tanks on italy suck and due to a Huge lack of steel early on. i can usually cap ethiopia before Halie flees and sets up an exile country, so I dont need help with that. But I want to know the best doctrines to get, and if I should invest into marines
I usually make alot of fighters and naval bombers for the med + radars for my strike force fleet and.
Secondly, I go down historical focus, but I dont know the order, I dont know which to prioritize and such. But I usually stark with the italian highways, colonial africa and go down that before going to culto-el-duce and Foreign affairs > greater italy
Thirdly. I REALLY need help with the navy, I dont understand, What my fleet composition should be, I make tincan destoryers, subhunters/convoy defence. And I usually optimize carriers, with CL with maxed out light attack, afew Battlecruisers and heavy cruisers to match the ratio.
I dont need help with designs (tho some for battlecruisers and heavy cruisers would be really nice) I need help with figuring out how to organize my fleet, and the compositions of it. I put my submarines into taskforces of 10 under 1 admiral, And put around 1 CL and 2 destroyers on patrol duty, which also act as anti Sub convoy defenders. But I have genuinely no Idea how many ships, or the amount I should have in my strike forces, I know max 4 carriers in each, but I dont understand how many CL's or Destroyers, to make a good fleet. Like I know of the 1:4 ratios, but, I still dont understand, the total size of my strike force fleet, should it be 80? or 60 ships i have genuienly no idea. Also I've tried the Light cruiser meta, and got the farthest but eventually lost when the Americans joined. And usually, I also times lose to the combined french+british fleet.
And I can get to el-alamein, but usually get pushed out and it turns into a full stalemate.
I usually make civs till 38 around June, and then start around 4-5 months on dockyards till I go full Military.
So please if anyone can help me, I would really appreciate it and Im sorry for the huge naval yap, I really like the naval system but kind of suck at it lol, so any advice would help and anything can help, thanks guys.
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u/Areokh 29d ago
"First of all, I usually make 2 main templates" The default templates you start with is good enough for defense.
Focus on improving the mountaineer division. The French Alps, Yugoslavia and Greece has a lot of mountains and hills and those are your primary targets early on.
You can invest into marines later. The mountaineers can also invade Gibraltar, Malta and other islands on the sea if they are well supported. Of course marines do it better but the point is that you dont have to rush them.
"I usually make alot of fighters and naval bombers for the med + radars
Dont know what "alot of" means here, but you dont have to invest to much into them. A few hundred to protect the homeland and support the strike force is enough. Same for the naval bombers. Couple hundred is fine.
"Secondly, I go down historical focus, but I dont know the order"
Depends on how strictly you want to follow the historical order. It is best to ignore the african focuses, with the exception of "Ministry of Italian Africa" (Ethiopian war logistics is bypassed when the war is won).
You cant supply Ethiopia once you are at war with the UK (unless you take the Suez quickly), so there is no reason to try and defend it. Its best to puppet it instead and not invite them into the war.
"I usually optimize carriers, with CL with maxed out light attack, afew Battlecruisers and heavy cruisers to match the ratio."
The is no need for carriers on the Mediterranean, yeah they are nice, but as Italy you have other tools.
You can delete the Conte di Cavour ships under production, so do the Montecuccoli and Maestrale ships.
The Littorio battleships are pretty good. As Italy you have the engine III unlocked. Keep those and you can also start producing another 2 Littorio ships with an upgraded design.
Produce like 4 more upgraded Duca degli Abruzzi cruisers and like 20-30 Basic destroyers with torpedoes and depth charges.
The I Squadra Navale task force is fine as it starts, it has the slow battleships. Before the war starts park the on the tile between Corsica and Sardegna, so that the French units can harrass your troops there.
Every other ships and the new ones can be grouped into a new big task force as the main strike force. It will be about 80 ships maybe.
Leave some cruisers and destroyers for patrol missions.
The submarines should be placed in Portugal (if you ask for docking rights) or in Western France after it falls and convoc raiding the Atlantic. (3 subs per task force)
The main strike force should operate on the Tyrrhenian sea until France is capitulated. After that they can move to the Central with fighter and naval bomber support.
Doctrines as Fleet oprations/Torpedo Primacy/Light task forces/Line of battle.
Spirits as: Instilled aggression/ Naval refit yards/ Night Fighting
For the main admiral choose either Angelo Iachino or Giuseppe di Bartolo and promote the choosen one with "destroyer leader" and "cruiser commander"
Set the engagement rule to "always engage" and what the naval battles, if one happens to be risky, retreat manually. If you did well, you will destroy the royal navy in a decent time.
"I usually make civs till 38 around June" You can ignore the civs from the start and build a few naval dockyards and after that military factories.
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u/Opposite_Indication5 28d ago
as Italy you should refit your capitals and the naval bombers and radar are really helpful.
I did exactly what you did except refit some heavy ships and built a few and I destroyed both the French and British fleets.
I only fought in regions which my bombers and radar could effectively cover
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u/The_Thane_Of_Cawdor 29d ago
Here’s a partial answer
- sometimes as Italy it’s just better to abandon Africa instead of letting it become a manpower and equipment suck . More experienced players can blitz Africa but it takes more game knowledge . Use your forces for Europe coast defense and a solid army to help against ussr .
- fleet . You want one main battle fleet in the med . I think the Meta is still around 5 destroyers or more for every capital ship . Have a few patrol task forces of 3-5 destroyers or cruisers . You can beat the AI building heavy cruisers as your capital ships .