How America Was Overrun by the Commie Hordes

So Fortress America hit the table today.  4 player game - I accepted the position of the USA - a great honor to try to defend our wonderful country from the invading commies, fascists, and terrorists.  Alex was the Rooskies, Jayson the Yellow Devils, and Jason the Blue Latin American whatevers.  Ok, I made those names up.   Below was the setup::

So let me just say I hadn't played this in close to 20 years I think.  And I don't think I ever played theUSA before, so I remembered nothing of strategy.  The USA has to keep the invaders from taking & keeping 18 of the 30 cities.  Many cities will fall early, as the USA forces are too spread out to mount much defense.   It also helps to get good die rolls as the USA.  I did not, especially in the east, which is the most active & congested part of the map.  A lot of cities leads to a lot of early fighting.  Crappy rolls make things very tough.   My situation deteriorated quickly.

My mistakes were plenty.  I usually need to play something a couple times before I can develop solid strategies for it.  I was not aggressive enough early to try to stave the advances of the invaders, especially in the south.  My thinking was to focus on some key areas.  I think more spreading out of my forces would have made them slow down a bit.  I also misplayed the movement a bit, as I needed a few turns to really grasp the rules again.  That made me inefficient.   I also put one of my lasers in a precarious place , and it was destroyed by the Russians.   

But the game was fun.  I like games where a good story emerges.  I do feel some guilt, as the freedom loving Americans suffered a horrible fate.  My opponents, of course, felt no remorse.  The Battles of Salt Lake City & St. Louis were memorable.