Overview
Strats and Tactics from a Mud And Blood veteran!
Introduction
Guide on Surviving Another Day as a Pacific Theater Commander
This will be a decent sized guide on being able to perform basic strategy and tactics to hold off another 1, 10 or maybe 100 more waves of Imperial Japanese!
DISCLAIMER!
(I have played a DECENT amount of this game at the time of making this guide and don’t plan on stopping anytime soon, so feel free to enlighten me if there is more we can learn.)
This guide will contain 3 sections explaining some strategy and basics to keeping your squad alive and will more or less be a compilation of what I have learned from playing.
Without further adue, we shall begin.
Act I (Requisitions)
In this first section we will learn some basic strategy and tactics for starting a new game. Things may be different for the Defense in Depth and Sector Defense game modes so I will explain them once we cross that path.
STARTING OUT
This image displays the many requisitions you can obtain before a fight.
(This may differ on the United Front DLC.)
MY TOP 5 REQUISITIONS FOR HIGH ROUND GAMEPLAY
(As of making this guide I am max rank for requisitions, though I will make a section for those who may just be starting.)
5 – Randomized Squad
This requisition is pretty good for lower ranks and starting out as you will get a randomized starting squad of most units that are in the game. This implies that you are able to start with a Marine Raider, an Engineer, Medic and Machinegunner if you are lucky enough! (Remember that it is randomized, so if you aren’t very lucky, I would spend my requisition score on something more reliable.)
4 – Pre-Established Defenses
This is also basically a luck based requisition as you can’t be guaranteed a great defensive position. You are guaranteed a few obstacles and maybe 1 or 2 support defenses for your field though, and that is what’s gonna be most important for higher rounds. The best support defenses you could get could be along the lines of a Trench, Foxhole, or Camnet. Trenches would be the most favorable in my terms, as you can fit most of your men inside one and prevent them from being shot until you can buy an Engineer to bolster your defense more.
3 – Secret Prototype Weapon (SPOILER)
This req is unironically pretty useful, actually. If you have a large pocket. This requisition is the most expensive one but it can be really useful for your team. The Bob Semple Tank is often referred to as the worst tank ever made, though it is really good at one thing; drawing fire.
If you pack your men into one or two trenches behind the tank, the BST can draw most of the fire away from your men, allowing them to pick off the enemy one by one as they try to slip past your lines. the BST can help further by supressing them with inaccurate machinegun fire. Personally, I haven’t seen this used past round 80, though if you can pick off most of the suicide bombers and AT soldiers you can manage to keep this thing alive for more than that.
2 – ANZAC Diggers
This was my favorite req before obtaining the #1 spot on the list as it is a really good requisition actually. ANZAC Diggers are essentially basic riflemen with Engineer capability, meaning you can have riflemen and engineers without buying one at the start of the round. These units have exceptional rifle skill as well, meaning you won’t get slaughtered unless you put them out in the open in front of dozens of Veteran Heitai.
1 – Merill’s Marauders
This requisition is what got me my highest rounds to date and it is most likely the best requisition available to your arsenal. Though you need Lieutenant Colonel rank to get the option for it. The average player may look at the downsides to this and think it may not be worth it. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons.
PROS:
Quick reaction time with the Grenadier specialization
Exceptional marksmanship
CONS:
-80 command points at start
3 men instead of 5
This requisition can be paired with Challenges and the Pre-Established Defenses req for maximum potential. A Challenge I like to pair with this is the Banzai Bonanza as you can get 4 more command score every wave (14 each wave) instead of the base 10 each wave, helping you obtain positive command score quicker. This will also be good with the Legion Of Merit medal to get 20 more command points at the start making it only -60 score.
The marauders are very good at taking down enemy units and my strat with them is to give 2 of them M1 Garands, and give the 3rd a Thompson to take out enemies at close range. They have an average of 60 Marksmanship for each unit and they can only get higher once they get more experience.
So now that you’ve decided what to choose, let’s get started with some basic strategy!
Act II (Basic Strategy)
Now that you’ve got your units ready, you might be hesitant to begin fending off the enemy. The first 5 waves consist of these enemy types:
Bullet Eaters
Bike Troop
Heitai
Officers
Engineers
Keep in mind this game is heavily randomized, so you may get units not displayed on this list.
Bullet Eaters and Bike Troops are not any problem at all. BE’s will most likely get shot a few times then run away due to their poor morale. Bike troop can’t fight back so you can just mow them down as soon as they try to pass your line.
Try to arrange your soldiers in a formation with CQC soldiers in front and ranged units in the back.
If you can find some rocks or trees, place your soldiers near or in them to give them cover.
Cover can be indicated by this shield displayed at the bottom.
A red “!” means no cover,
Yellow is bad cover,
Green is decent cover
and Blue means the best available cover.
Cover determines the chance of a bullet hitting your soldier.
I have my men arranged next to these rocks giving them some basic cover until I can afford an engineer.
Once you get enough command points, buy an engineer and deploy some trenches for your men to take cover in.
This is a pretty barebones defensive composition, though it has gotten me past wave 100.
Make sure to obtain these air supply crates to have a chance at getting a soldier from them!
Make sure to get a medic and place them near your men to provide health for them as well.
Now that you’ve got your setup down, let’s move into advanced strategy.
Act III (Advanced Strategy)
So you’ve got your setup. Now we can move on to some strategies to help preserve the life of your men and prevent the enemy from getting into your lines!
Rifle Grenade
The rifle grenade is a great way to kill an enemy from long range with decent power manually. These are good for any situation where there may be a group of enemies packed tight together or maybe a high value target appears on the enemy line. Combine this with the Munitions Dump fortification and you will occasionally get them for free!
Combat Stimulants
Combat Stimulants are a godsend. These things are a relatively cheap alternative to a medic. for 12 command points you can increase your soldier’s health instantly for 100 points. This is super useful for when you have a valuable soldier that can’t die, or for multiple you are trying to save at once.
Smoke Screen
The Smoke Screen is a very useful item that you can use to hide your men from enemies. I use them personally to block the view from enemy vehicles. You can use this to buy your anti tank units some time or just to hide your men from a wave of hungry enemies.
Satchel Charge
Probably the best equipment here so far, this item is really useful for taking out enemy tunnels or enemy vehicles. Just make sure your soldier is far enough and that enemies don’t tear him up!
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Some tips for the road:
Don’t get too many units on screen unless you have camnets and palisades. The reason for this is that enemy officers can call artillery strikes on populated positions!- the less the better!
Tanks are always useful, though the most expensive and most armored tank isn’t always the best option. Make sure your tank is in the line of sight of your enemies, but far away so it can engage.
Maintain your men and upgrade them through the Special Forces Training command.
Always fall back if you need to! if you are playing Defense in Depth, you have 2 more positions to go through!
Remember to do the daily requisition challenge to get commendations; tokens used to buy Specializations for your soldiers!
No one lasts forever. Especially in a game as brutal as this. Always stride for medals and ribbons to get more out of your games and expect the worst to come so the good will be a pleasant surprise!
Fear the Teishin Shudan.