Description[]
Supply and Demand is the second scenario of the German Campaign in Empire Earth.
Briefing[]
Supply and Demand: Winter 1915-1916
Britain's naval blockade against Germany is taking its toll. Germany's High Seas Fleet is well built, but it is no match for the British fleet, especially in their home waters. To break the blockade, the High Seas Fleet opts to lure enemy vessels back to friendly waters where they can be sunk piecemeal.
In a stroke of luck for Germany, the Brits have replaced Winston Churchill as First Lord of the Admiralty. Perhaps his successor will be more susceptible to German ploys. The Kaiser and the War Office have several major offensives planned for the end of the year. But without supplies, they are doomed to failure.
Starting Conditions[]
Territory[]
The player controls Germany. The German territory is situated at the southeast of the map, surrounded by water.
Buildings[]
You have initial control over four Town Centers, as well as several coastal Towers and multiple Houses.
There are German Docks along the coastline, but they are not under your control. The purpose of these Docks is to provide a landing point for the "supply transports" (Transport Ships) later in the scenario. These Docks are still vulnerable to enemy attack, so they must be defended.
Town Centers can create Citizens, German Officers and Observation Balloons. Citizens can build Settlements, Houses, Towers, 88mm AA Guns, Lighthouses, Docks, Naval Yards, Aerodromes, a Stadium, Farms and Hospitals.
Resources[]
Starting from Wilhelmshaven at the western end of your territory, the first two Town Centers each have an Iron mine and a Gold mine within a short walk. The third Town Center has three Stone mines within a short walk. The fourth Center is close to a large cluster of Trees that will sustain continuous logging throughout the scenario. There are many Fish shoals off the coast.
You also have the following initial resources:
When trading with Denmark, try to give tributes of exactly 500 Food or 500 Wood at a time because any surpluses will be lost. They will give you Gold for your Food and Iron for your Wood.
Objectives[]
- After you construct a Dock or Navy Yard, German Supply Transports will start to arrive at the Northern and Southern Route entry points. Northern ships will head for the German Ports at Kiel and Rostock, Southern ships will head for Wilhelmshaven and Bremerhaven. You must ensure that a total of 20 Transports make it to port safely.
- You may find it useful to trade with Denmark. Denmark will give you Gold for Food and Iron for Wood. To make a trade, use the Alliances & Tributes screen to give the resources to Denmark. They will accept lots of 500 only, and you will get 250 back.
- The Red Baron must survive.
- Bring a U-Boat to a British Dock or Navy Yard to signal the Spy waiting in Britain.
- Bring the Spy to the British Capitol to shut down their air power.
Brief Summary[]
Your objective is to protect twenty "supply transports" as they cross the sea and arrive at the German Docks that are situated along your coastline. These transports are not under your control, but they are vulnerable to attack, so they need to be defended.
History[]
In 1916, while war raged on land and in the air, Germany faced another problem at sea: how to defeat the powerful British fleet. The Germans had assumed before the war that the British would adopt a close blockade of Germany's ports. This had been the strategy used by the British against the French, Spanish, and Portuguese for the last 250 years. To counter such a blockade, Germany had developed powerful, heavily-armored ships of limited endurance and crew comfort, as well as large numbers of torpedo craft. But the British Admiralty was astute enough to realize that the nature of sea warfare had changed and that a close blockade would not be as effective as it had been in the past. Instead, they opted to maintain a more distant blockade in open waters.
The point of any blockade is to deny the enemy access to resources delivered by their merchant fleet. Unfortunately for Germany, access to her ports was either via the English Channel or the North Sea. The Channel was well protected by a pre-dreadnought battle squadron as well as countless destroyers and torpedo craft. And the British Grand Fleet based at Scapa Flow effectively blocked the North Sea. By 1916, Britain had successfully blockaded Germany for two years. Shortages were beginning to affect the performance of the army and navy, as well as civilian morale.
The German High Seas Fleet was not in a position to challenge the British Grand Fleet in open battle; the British Fleet was twice as large and had more powerful warships. To counter this superiority, the Germans attempted to achieve temporary tactical advantages by trapping a few British ships at a time and overwhelming them before reinforcements could arrive. The largest operation of this kind took place at the end of May 1916 and later became known as the Battle of Jutland. Although the German Fleet destroyed more ships than they lost, German losses constituted a greater percentage of their overall naval power. As a result, future German naval offensives had to be severely curtailed.
Hints & Strategy[]
- When trading with Denmark, try to give tributes of exactly 500 Food or 500 Wood at a time because any surpluses will be lost. They will give you Gold for your Food and Iron for your Wood.
- Building an Airport will summon the famous flyer, Manfred von Richthofen, to the sector.
- The Albatros fighter is better against enemy aircraft than the Fokker.
- Keep a path open so the German Transports can reach port. If any get stuck, and stop moving, the crew will scuttle them.
- Transports will constantly arrive until you have successfully received all 20 shipments.
- To find out how many more shipments need to arrive, select one of the German Transports.
- It will take the British some time to set up their naval blockade, so the sooner you build naval facilities, the better.
- Don't forget to accompany your warships with Cruisers, because the range of the RAF extends well into the North Sea.
Economy[]
Gather every resource, as these will be important for building, improving and replenishing your forces during the scenario.
- A Farm is the best method for gathering Food, as Fishing Boats are too vulnerable to sea attack.
- Settlements built next to mines within the range of Town Centers are the best method for gathering Stone, Gold and Iron.
- Although the option to trade with Denmark to procure Gold and Iron in available, it would be very good to keep the player's own steady supply of precious metal.
- The Hospital improvement "Vitamins" will boost Citizen Speed, increasing their gather rate.
Coastal defenses[]
Wilhelmshaven will sustain constant sea and air attacks from the British during the scenario. Use Citizens to build and rebuild Towers and 88mm AA Guns to slow the rate of overall damage to the sector. Build an Aerodrome anywhere in your territory to summon the famous flyer, Manfred von Richthofen, and several Fokker Fighter/Bombers to your territory. Set a gather point at Wilhelmshaven to defend the sector. There is risk and advantages in where the player sets up their Aerodrome; building one directly in Wilhelmshaven ensures a quick availability should the need arise to attack British vessels or fight off their aircraft, but it also makes it vulnerable to bomber strikes,
Combat strategy[]
Supply transports will not appear until you have built your first Dock. Before building Docks, you can build a Lighthouse, which will illuminate approximately 50% of the sea map. The Lighthouse will reveal where many enemy Ships are located, and will make your sea attack easier to plan.
The yellow supply transports will begin appearing at two small islands each bearing a yellow flag, one in the north of the map and one in the south (these sites are revealed at the beginning of the scenario). The first few supply transports will likely be sunk by enemy air and sea forces, and will continue to be sunk until you build up your own sea forces enough to clear their passage . There does not seem to be any limit on the number of supply transports that will appear through the scenario, so take your time to build your Navy.
[]
You will be able to clear the northern sea lane by using U-boats to sink enemy Battleships, as there are no enemy Frigates or U-boats in the area, (although some may come later). There is no air defense in the area either, so you can also use Gotha Bombers to sink enemy Battleships with minimal losses.
The southern sea lane is defended by air and sea forces, but it can be easily controlled with a good naval force. Dardos are essential to defending against air attack, so you should build multiple units and fully improve them before they are deployed. A good contingent of Battleships, Frigates and U-boats should be created and improved to defend Dardos and to attack enemy ships. You may also need air support in your initial incursion. Once you gain control of the sea lane, these units will provide adequate support to allow the supply transports safe passage to the German Docks.
Sabotaging the British Air Force[]
Once several transport ships have made it safely to German shores and the player has amassed sufficient naval power, there is a prompt for a side mission where player can try to send at least one of their naval units to the British Docks. If successful, a straightforward but dangerous mission commences: the player has to lead a German operative behind the enemy line to the British capitol in Kingston to plant false intel. Said operative comes under heavy fire of the British Airforce and only has enough health for one concise trip. If the player gets distracted and lets him idle, he will likely die. If the operative makes it, the British Air Force is disabled for the rest of the scenario, greatly trivializing the challenge imposed on the player to complete it.
