This was a 6-player game I'd played soon after I'd gotten home from work. Nobody dropped or disconnected, something of a rarity it seems.
I was Russia, Mick was Asia, The Hunted was Europe, Tui was NA, Mr. Magoo was SA, and Armus was Africa. The only one of these folks I remember seeing before was Tui, and he seemed to be a pretty good player from what I'd seen. The Hunted was the host, and he didn't shut it down before the game ended. The other players I'd never played with before to my knowledge so I didn't what I'd be facing.
At game start, I set up my silos away from both Europe's and Asia's radar ranges, and placed two airbases east of my silos and two just west, still out of potential radar range as far as I could tell. People started pairing off in alliances: NA allied with SA, Europe allied with Africa, and I allied with Asia. I placed a majority of my naval forces near Europe (all my battleships, six carriers, and six subs). My intention was to target Europe first. I also sent six carriers across the Arctic towards NA for a role they would play later on. I'd also placed six subs in the Pacific, sending them towards the west coast of the U.S. (admittedly a mistake, since I lost them before they got to where they were going...that's what I get for sending subs on a long voyage without checking up on them :/ )
Interestingly enough, The Hunted actually announced his intention to attack Russia with bombers and subs early on right on the public channel. His African ally said something to the effect of "he really didn't place any ships", which I knew full well he did (my BBs were almost on top of them), but I didn't say anything. I figured my northern naval forces closing in eventual combat with Europe's navy would end up being decimated if not completely obliterated.
At Defcon 3 I launched the bombers off the six carriers near Europe, sending them to naval combat detail. I knew where three of Europe's silos were, plus three radars and two airbases. Sadly I wasn't able to find the other silos (maybe Tui did tho). I sent fighters on scouting missions but they didn't last, and neither did the carriers they were launched from, though I did get those European surface ships pretty good. The six subs did survive that exchange without being spotted.
Midway through Defcon 2 I started launching my land-based bombers towards Asia (Mick didn't say anything the entire game, though I did tell him what I was up to). The targets were the European silos, radars, and airbases I could see, and I was going to send some at Cairo. When Defcon 1 hit most of my bombers were out, and I sent them over to their targets. I also launched a couple of scouts near a trio of subs I had right off the coast to see if any naval vessels were nearby. When I saw there was no immediate danger, I launched those three subs at those same targets. I also took my other three northern subs and went after cities (one sub I sent all five nukes at London, and I think at least three hit). Europe's three eastern silos (the ones I could see) sent into launch mode which enabled me and everyone else targeting Europe at that time to pretty much gut it. I also emptied my easternmost silo into Europe as my bombers were launching their nukes. After my bombers sent their provocative packages to their targets I sent them back to the bases to reload and sent them back out again. I put the subs I'd just emptied on hunter-killer detail, and I was able to stop a European sub attack before too much damage could be done (I think he got 3-4 nukes away before I got to him). Once Europe was pretty much done, I turned my attention to the six carriers I had roaming the Arctic, as they has passed the Bering Strait and was nearing their destination. Seeing no immediate resistance, I put them all into bomber-launch and waited a few moments for the launch timers to run out, then I launched six bombers at Los Angeles and six at San Francisco. As soon as I could I also launched a fighter escort. I soptted one radar in Canada I took out. Tui started launching aircraft from his carriers in the Pacific and from a nearby airbase when he saw me coming. I launched fighters to counter his, and though I lost a good chunk of my bombers, I managed to get their nukes away, and all the nukes hit. I ended up with three bombers left. At one point Tui fired a nuke at my carriers but I was able to move them away before it hit. I had fighters harassing incoming fighters and bombers. Somehow I'd kept all six carriers alive.
By this point my airbases were log out of nukes, and I started sending whatever bombers I had left towards my two easternmost bases for an eventual trip to rendezvous with the carriers over NA. About this time Tui decided to go ahead and launch his silos. He did send a few nukes my way, but most of them were heading for Africa and Asia. I sent my three surviving bombers in the Arctic with an escort of fighters to nuke Chicago while the silos were launching. I saw that Mr. Magoo (SA) had launched his silos already. Thinking that they were empty and in air-defense mode, I decided to go ahead and empty my five full silos at NA and the Central America, leaving the SA mainland alone). At the time I launched I thought I didn't really have a prayer of winning. I was in 3rd place with about 150-160 points, and Tui, the leader at that time, was about 200 points ahead of me. I lost the three brave bombers but not before all of them launched their nukes and left the Windy City a smoking ruin.
As my ICBMs were impacting I saw myself creeping up in points and on the table (I think I got Mexico City five times, and it was intact up to that point). I even managed to pull myself ahead as the last of my ICBMs were en route, reaching their targets, or getting shot down. Armus (Africa) launched, and the points he got off me (I'd finished with 37m survivors, so there wasn't a whole lot left) Mick, and I think Mr. Magoo pulled him about 20-30 points ahead of me after the vic timer started running. I was happy with what I'd done. I scored 300+ points in a Default-scoring game for the first time and was in line to finish second. I was sending bombers from my airbases to my carriers in the Arctic that housed my last nukes, but I figured I wouldn't be able to get enough points myself to pull off the win.
Then my ally stepped in. Mick launched a massive attack on Africa (he'd been setting the game at 5x speed much of the time, and everyone was almost demanding speed increases), and Tui or Mr. Magoo was joining him. Didn't know which). I was pretty much concentrating on my bombers coming to the carriers in the Arctic trying to make a last-gasp run for some points before the clock ran out so I wasn't paying much attention to what was happening to Africa, or even the scores, but I noticed Armus comment "all he did was let church win" on the public channel, and to my surprise I was more than 20 points clear with less than 10 minutes left on the vic timer. I was sending three bombers back into NA when the game ended. 332 points, a new personal record, and my second-ever multiplayer win at Defcon.
Those six carriers in the Arctic were my only surviving naval vessels of any kind when the game ended.
I would not have won this if it weren't for Mick's timely strike on Africa. The server shut down before I could thank him in the game, so Mick, if you happen to read this, many many thanks mate
Take Care
-Church