In the previous chapter, we faced Olaf in a rematch against his four medium tanks. Olaf didn’t think he could lose a frontal assault, and we proved him wrong. But it isn’t over yet! What will he pull out this time?
Something tells me Olaf is getting fancy air units, not us…
THE BRIEFING
We’re getting more air units?
Orange Star’s Md tank development team has succeeded! Plus, you’ve also been given some new and improved anti-airs!
Oh nice. Not air units, but still nice!
Now, let’s discuss the current operation, Ophelia.
An entire company has disappeared on its way to the front lines.
What, again? Didn’t that happen before? Actually, isn’t that what happens every time?
It was made up mostly of Md tanks and tanks, so this is serious.
Oh no…
It may mean that they ran into an air squadron complete with bom…
I don’t like this. I had a feeling, but come on… why does Olaf always get the fancy stuff?
No, that’s not possi… Forget it. It’s nothing.
Nell… As your advisor, I must advise you to plan for the worst-case scenario.
I’m sure I’m just reading too much into the situation. Well, time to get moving!
Uh oh…
Day 1/Enemy Day 1
Wait, what? Wasn’t it our day first? Why is Olaf acting now?
Nell! Mobilizing your troops again, are you? Well, you’re too late! Fly, my masters of the sky! Finish off these surviving troops, then destroy that meddlesome Nell’s units!
Olaf’s air force skipped my day and destroyed a Copter, a Medium Tank, and a wounded Tank. Air units are scary!
He moved the rest of his units forward. I still don’t know how he skipped my day. I could have pulled these units back. First-turn advantage at its finest.
Day 2
He’s got bombers… and fighters, too. This is bad.
Told you to plan for the worst.
All of our units that were deployed here have been decimated. If we don’t stop Olaf here, he’ll push onward and cause even more damage.
It’s not that bad actually…
This is a major turning point! We must be strong!!!
I mean…
First, let me tell you about a new unit which has been assigned to you.
Against other ground units, they’re practically unstoppable. But–as you’ve just seen–they’re helpless against bombers.
Right… Let me interrupt Nell and introduce Bombers real quick!
INTEL — BOMBER
The Bomber is one of the most powerful units. At 22,000G, it is expensive, but its high firepower allows it to deal massive damage to almost every ground and naval unit. With 7 movement, it can quickly reach valuable targets while ignoring terrain, making it especially effective against Tanks, Medium Tanks, Artillery, and other expensive units.
Its biggest weakness is that it cannot attack air units, leaving it vulnerable to Fighters and anti-air defenses if positioned poorly. It also consumes 5 fuel every day passively, even when it does not move, so keeping it supplied is important during longer battles. Unlike most ground units, a Bomber can only be resupplied by an APC or an Airport, making Airport positioning and fuel management important considerations.
Overall, the Bomber is a high-risk, high-reward offensive unit: devastating when properly supported, but an expensive liability when sent in alone. Protect it from enemy air units, keep it supplied, and its combination of mobility and firepower can make it one of the most threatening units on the battlefield.
We’ll also go over Fighters.
INTEL — FIGHTER
The Fighter is the primary air-to-air combat unit in Advance Wars 1. At 20,000G, it is slightly cheaper than a Bomber and has 9 movement, allowing it to quickly reach and eliminate enemy air units. Its main purpose is to control the skies: Fighters can destroy Bombers and other Fighters, making them extremely important whenever both players are investing heavily in air units.
Like the Bomber, the Fighter consumes 5 fuel every day, even when it does not move, so fuel management is important during longer battles. It can only be supplied by an APC or Airport, and running out of fuel will eventually destroy the unit.
Fighters are especially valuable for protecting Bombers and contesting enemy airspace. Because they are cheaper than Bombers and have greater movement, maintaining Fighter control can determine whether your opponent can safely deploy their own expensive air units.
One more important thing to note is fighter will not take any counter attack damage from battle copters.
Select this one, please.
That’s what anti-air units can do! You can see how overwhelmingly powerful they are against air units. Plus, against ground units, mech and infantry in particular, they’re more effective than tanks. However, tanks will defeat them in head-to-head combat. Now that you understand anti-air units, I’ll let you take command. Do you want some strategic advice?
Sure! But before that, here’s the intel on Anti-Air.
INTEL — ANTI-AIR
The Anti-Air is one of the most cost-effective defensive units in Advance Wars. At only 8,000G, it has strong firepower against both air units and infantry, while still being capable of dealing significant damage to light vehicles. Its 6 movement gives it good mobility for a defensive unit, allowing it to keep up with Tanks and quickly respond to enemy air attacks. Against Copters, Fighters and Bombers, Anti-Air can be especially dangerous when positioned correctly, forcing the opponent to think twice before moving their expensive aircraft into range.
The main weakness of the Anti-Air is that it is not a heavy combat unit. It performs poorly against Tanks and other heavily armored vehicles, so it should not be used as a replacement for your main ground force. It also has limited range, meaning careful positioning is important.
Anti-Air is particularly valuable because its low cost makes it an efficient way to protect key areas from air units while also threatening Infantry and other cheap units. Sometimes it’s a much safer investment than trying to match an opponent’s expensive air force with Fighters of your own.
Watch out for Fighters, Bombers, Battle Copters, and medium tanks. It appears the Fighters and Bombers don’t have much fuel or ammunition. I was nervous at first, but we may get through this after all!
Yeah. I was going to bring that up earlier, but you were focused and wouldn’t listen…
With air units, you have to watch how much fuel they have. I already told you that copters use two fuel units per day. The other air units–fighters and bombers–use five per day. If they run out, they crash, and the units are lost! Try to make the most of this intel.
I already brought this up during the Bomber and Fighter intel. Tell me something I don’t know!
Let’s talk more on strategy after the bombers and fighters are gone. Good luck!
Well, that’s not too hard. Olaf’s Bomber has only 13 fuel, and his Fighter has only 12. They’ll crash on their own without any help from us, so we can ignore them. Anyway, let’s go over this mission.
STRATEGY — OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER
Today’s operation is pretty straightforward. We’ll fight Olaf head-on. Since we don’t need to worry about his Fighter and Bomber, our military strength is actually fairly even. Our army is more cohesive, so we’ll come out on top.
Remember, when your military strength is equal to the enemy’s, dividing your troops is a major taboo in military strategy.
Anyway, our ground forces are pretty far from Olaf, so today we’ll just move our units forward.
We’ll leave those three infantry units behind because they’re too slow to keep up with the rest of the army. We shouldn’t need them anyway for this operation.
Enemy Day 2
Olaf also moved some of his forces forward and started capturing our cities.
Day 3
Olaf’s Fighter and Bomber have one and zero fuel, respectively. That means they’ll crash at the start of his day, so we don’t need to worry about them. Let’s focus on his land forces.
Let’s first take out as much of Olaf’s infantry and mech as possible to stop them from capturing our cities.
Let’s move the rest of our units forward. Notice that we’re leaving the infantry within range of Olaf’s Battle Copter. This should bait him into sending the Copter toward us so we can defeat it with our Anti-Air next day.
Enemy Day 3
See, they were never a problem.
We also successfully baited Olaf’s Battle Copter. He also attacked into our tank and anti-air, but the damage is acceptable.
Day 4
First, the Battle Copters… The simplest thing to do is use your infantry as decoys. Draw the copters toward your Anti-Air units, then attack.
Well, I’m not sure if you’re aware, Nell, but we already did that!
If you can take out the battle copters like that, then the fight is ours!
Well, there’s also a medium tank.
As for medium tanks, try to trap them and pound away with your artillery. Once that’s accomplished, you’ll be in complete control.
Glad we agree. But we won’t be trapping it; we’ll bait it with our Transport Copter.
If your air units look low on fuel, you can resupply them with an APC. I told you that already, didn’t I?
Indeed.
Well, anyway, the rest is up to you! Good luck!
First, let’s destroy the copter.
Next, let’s clean up the tanks.
Finally, let’s set up the bait for Olaf’s medium tank.
We’ll set up the bait with the Transport Copter and place our artillery within range to counterattack his medium tank. We’ll also clean up Olaf’s capturing infantry with our Battle Copter.
Enemy Day 4
Olaf took the bait as usual and started capturing again with his mech. He never learns.
Day 5
Let’s start the day by bombarding Olaf’s medium tanks.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t defeat the medium tank, but it’s weakened enough that it’s no longer a threat. We also used our Transport Copter to move a Mech toward Olaf’s artillery and set up tomorrow’s kill. In the meantime, we can wipe out Olaf’s last Mech.
Our medium tank and anti-air made quick work of that mech. We also moved the infantry up to engage Olaf’s artillery tomorrow.
Enemy Day 5
Honestly, I’m surprised Olaf attacked at all, but he didn’t do enough damage for it to matter.
Day 6
Let’s end the mission today.
We can destroy the medium tank with our 9-HP Mech, then use our Battle Copter, full-HP Mech, and 3-HP infantry to take out the artillery.
That 3-HP infantry mattered! Never underestimate your low-cost, low-HP units; they can come in handy!
The fact that he had no clue about keeping them supplied saved us.
Yeah. You know what an airport is, right?
Good luck in the next battle. Keep up the good work!
We forgot to refill the fuel tanks? What are you fools thinking??? Is it that hard to refuel an aircraft?
You know, to this day, I still don’t know how to refuel a flying Bomber with an APC from the ground.
Augh!!! Just wait until next time!
Been waiting a long time.
RESULTS
Today, we witnessed the might of powerful Bombers and Fighters. But because of Olaf’s logistical failure, they were destroyed without causing us significant damage.
Next time… we’ll move on and learn how to deal with air units!
LOADING TRANSMISSIONS…