When Germany moves east in 1901 it is usually by way of Silesia but 2.2% of Germanys send A Ber-Pru, which is in many ways superior to the opening to Silesia. While both give Germany a chance at Warsaw, the move to Prussia allows for the possibility of a maneuver that is virtually certain to succeed and devastate Russia's long-term prospects - A Pru-Lvn. Now Germany has a unit bordering 3 of the Tsar's home centers and Russia must devote at least 2 units to successfully defend against it, more if the Tsar is ever to drive the German from Mother Russia. Meanwhile, Germany has likely gotten the 2 builds of Holland and Denmark, denied Russia Sweden, and has very promising oppurtunities to the east in 1902.
The most common German openings to Prussia are as follows:
A Ber-Pru, A Mun-Ruh, F Kie-Den The Prussian Opening
A Ber-Pru, A Mun-Sil, F Kie-Den Barbarossa
But Barbarossa is simply too risky as it virtually assures that Holland will be taken by England, quite possibly with an army.
The one advantage that opening to Silesia rather than Prussia holds for Germany is that it is far more likely to bounce an unexpected Russian attack - if the Tsar attacks Germany in S1901 he is far more likely to do so via Silesia (6.2% of the time) than Prussia (0.7%).
Overall, Germanys open to Prussia 1.2% of the time, too infrequently considering the potential of such a move.
- The Scribe
Most German players open with:
F Kiel-Denmark
A Berlin-Kiel
A Munich-Ruhr
in order to get Holland and Denmark, 2 guaranteed builds.
However, a very common Russian opening is A Moscow-Sevastopol, to either support F
Rumania or to be convoyed to Rumania. If Germany is confident that this
will be the opening, then a powerful but dangerous opening is:
A Berlin-Prussia
A Munich-Silesia
F Kiel-Denmark,
followed in the Fall phase by:
F-Denmark-Sweden,
A Silesia-Warsaw
A Prussia S A Silesia-Warsaw.
This way Russia doesn't get a build, and Germany still gets 2, with a great position against Russia and a good shot at Sweden. There is some danger in the West, so an alliance with England is strongly recomended. An alliance with Austria is also quite handy as it can keep Russia out of Rumania, causing an actual loss of a supply center.