Superpowers

**Superpowers** are countries that are extremely large and powerful. They will most likely be at war with at least one other nation, to support themselves and to become larger. In fact, you may be their next target! Here's a guide on how to avoid being annexed by that country.

### Superpowers In HWW

These are the only countries that start as superpowers in Historic World War (and Blitzkrieg excluding Japan)

* United States
* United Kingdom
* Soviet Union
* Germany
* Japan
* France
* Italy

### How to Spot One

* Nations that are usually highly advanced in research will have to have lots of resources, and can have stronger units than you. Check the newspaper to see the list, and be wary of them.
* Large armies or production per day usually means a strong nation. Again, check the news, or check your borders.
* Nuclear reactors require lots of resources (particularly rare materials), and if you see at least one, there is a very high chance that they are a superpower.
* Any country that seems like there are double or triple the amount of non-core provinces to core provinces (meaning the presence of colonies)
* If you see enemy units that specialize in scouting, such as submarines or armored cars, be on alert, and don't let them see anything.

Keep your friends close, your enemies closer, and your army closest.

### Why Me?

If any nation declares war on you, there's got to be a reason.

* The nation wants more resources, and you have a double production in your territory.
* Needs to secure your borders, in case that other big nation next to them declares war (i.e. Poland, Slovakia, and Germany).
* You're small and maybe easy to conquer.
* There was some hatred in the beginning (the newspaper discussions on day 0 in games that wait until all players joined).
* Your one of your allies/coalition member is hostile with them, and they see it as an excuse to complete the above.
	+ Or said ally drags you into the fray.
* One of their allies/coalition member is hostile with one of your allies/coalition member, and sees you as a viable target.
* You're a threat to them.

Okay, the last one may seem ridiculous, but we'll explain from the top. Large nations require large amounts of food and goods, and may see you as a good source of them. If a nation *is* going to declare war on someone else, you might make it easier to protect their own borders (i.e. a surprise attack from the south). Small nations may not have a large army, let alone a large number of provinces for them to blitz through. Alliances were a reason why World War 1 and 2 started. If you have too many friends, chances are that your friendship will end with that nation coming through. Of course, you can't help having 3 countries descend on you, since they likely planned the invasion. You're a threat. Wait, how is that possible? Well, if you have Right of Way with a larger nation, that's concerning. If you have a large army near your borders, that's a threat.

### Dealing With That Nation

* Make trades with that nation. 5k per resource (except rares) are recommended, don't ask for anything considerable in return.
* Offer Right of Way to them.
	+ Don't take them up if they ask first or ask for Share Map, they might be plotting something.
		- See relations for information on the different relations.

### Defending

You've done all that you can, but the nation still decides to attack you. What now? You have to defend your homeland. Here's how:

#### Invasion by Sea

##### 1st Defense

* Shell any arriving convoys from a reasonable distance with artillery and railroadguns. Attack important units like other artillery, armored units, or defensive units.
	+ Bombing with tactical bombers will also work, but make sure there isn't a cruiser nearby or in the stack.
* Use subs and destroyers to attack enemy subs, and use cruisers and battleships to attack other sea units. **Do not send any other units other than subs and destroyers against enemy subs.**
* Gather your forces and place accordingly in front of the artillery for protection and to attack any stragglers that made it ashore.
* If there is about 30 min left on disembarking time, do one of the following:
	+ Leave the army at a province if there are a few units left, or if it is guarding an important industrial center (level 3+ ICs or level 2 or higher of anything else)/resource producer.
	+ Retreat to a location where you can gather a good chunk of your forces, if the enemy still has a considerable amount of forces still alive, or if nearby provinces are useless.

##### 2nd Defense

* Behind the first line of defense, put armored cars and militia/infantry.
* If the first line falls back, move the second line accordingly.
* These units can be used to fill in holes or add strength to reduced stacks.
* Artillery can be added, if you have extra.

##### 3rd Defense

* Defend the homeland! Put a moderate amount of forces on the edge of your core provinces.
* All cities with great structures should produce infantry to send to the defense.
* Cities with less strong structures should produce anti-air and anti tanks. These will be important if the enemy starts to bomb you or roll tanks into the area.
* Any barracks should produce militia as much as possible, and scatter throughout your cores.
* If you have access to the sea, produce some destroyers and cruisers.
* If you have islands, don't hesitate to produce units there.

#### Land Invasion

* Anti tank units may be useful when dealing with a land invasion.
* Infantry and medium tanks can be usable in defending quickly.
* Attack with cruisers or battleships if they can.
* If you have high command, set artillery to "aggressive" after they're moved to the point where their fire range is just on the border of the province. This will make the artillery attack any units that decide to march on to your territory. Just be careful; if you decide to switch too early, you might start a war that you're not prepared for.