by morningstar
A somewhat minor but significant point of tactics is where to put your factories. The most important impact of that is the question of how many factories can you have? Of course every country can have 5 factories, but some factories are rarely a good idea to build. England can safely build 5 factories (although there's rarely a reason to go that far), whereas Italy is usually limited to 3.Austria
Austria rarely builds factories anyway, because it's so useful as an attack dog, and the player controlling it doesn't want to make it too valuable, and thus desirable to take away. In any case all positions for Austria's factories are very vulnerable, even including it's original factory in Vienna, but excluding the one in Budapest. It's not always a bad idea to build factories in Austria, though.
Vienna
This factory is vulnerable, being on the border with both Italy and Germany. It's probably the most frequently blown-up original factory in the game. At least Italy and Germany often don't see it as a threat, because Austria can't attack Italy's home territory very efficiently by land, and it's not in competition with Germany for neutrals. More often it gets occupied when a player is using Germany or Italy to protect Russia.
Budapest
Serves the same purpose as Vienna: crank out armies to go in any direction. But it's much less frequently occupied.
Trieste
Austria's only fleet factory. Build it if you want to annoy Italy, but at the same time, it's very vulnerable to Italy. I'd also say it's almost required if you want Austria to make x5 on the kredit track, though that's rarely desirable and possible at the same time. Without it, you usually can't get more than the Balkans in tax markers. With it, and a weak or cooperative Italy, you can add some sea territories and maybe some of North Africa.
Lemburg
This is the generally preferred spot for a 3rd army factory. Any additional army factory can be attacked by Russia; Prague can be attacked by Russia or Germany. The only small downside of Lemburg is that it can be attacked from Romania, which occasionally will have a Russian army in it even if Russia does not.
Prague
You only build a factory in Prague if you control Germany and/or you expect to continue to control it. There are two ways it can be advantageous. One, if the Russians occupy the factory, perhaps German armies can liberate it. Two, if anyone takes Austria from you, you have greater chance to weaken it.
Italy
Italy only really has three viable factory spots. Genoa and Venice are too vulnerable.
Rome
It's pretty safe, since Austria is usually weak as a naval power. Nevertheless, it can be occupied temporarily by "surprise attack" by an Austria player with short-term plans. It won't be hard to liberate.
Naples
Italy's only viable fleet factory. Since Italy is a sea power, that would seem to be a bit of a problem, but Italy doesn't have much competition in the Mediterranean. Like Rome, it can be occupied by Austria, but Austria will usually go for Rome. If they leave Rome open, it's too easy to produce an army there and soon use it to liberate Naples.
Florence
The only viable new factory location for Italy. Producing armies might not be ideal for Italy, but it isn't bad either, especially if you have to deal with a well-armed and annoying Austria.
Venice
This factory is generally too vulnerable to Austria. Austria can get away with factories on the borders of other countries, partly because they have no choice for a third factory, partly because they at least produce armies to defend themselves. Of course you can leave a fleet in port to defend the factory, but that kind of defeats the purpose of the factory. Armies have the ability to move out and preemptively strike, or go do something useful and then come back when defense is needed.
If you absolutely have to build a 4th factory or a fleet factory, Venice is still better than Genoa, because at least it's not vulnerable to France too.
Occasionally, you might build Venice as your 3rd factory, if you want Italy's value to depend on Austria, which you control.
Genoa
It's vulnerable to Austria as much as Venice, and also vulnerable to France. Usually you build it if you want Italy's success to depend on France, which you control. Alternatively, if you control Italy but don't really care about its kredit score, then you might build the Genoa factory just to annoy France. They can still block it but it takes up their resources, and if they don't, you can crank out some fleets to do some damage. But I'd still say Florence is a better choice. The armies can march overland against France's factories faster than the fleets can convoy them there.
France
France has many good options for factories. The only one that's not really great is Marseilles, and even it is acceptable.
Paris
It's vulnerable to England by sea, but England is often short of armies and has better uses for them than occupying factories. So it's pretty safe.
Bordeaux
Not very vulnerable to attack. If attack comes it will usually be by sea, but that requires at least a two-step convoy. A second possibility is for it to be occupied indirectly by sea via Spain. The biggest drawback of the Bordeaux factory, I find, is that its outlet is so often blocked. You can produce ships there, but England won't let them leave. You can fight the English ships but often come up short of taking the sea territory, and more importantly, being able to convoy armies to Portugal or Morocco.
Dijon
I believe this should be the usual pick for a 3rd French factory. It's vulnerable to German attack, but produces the armies to defend itself.
Brest
A fleet factory would probably be more useful to France, but the problem is it's an uphill battle to go against England. England certainly is not going to let you into the English Channel without a fight, unless they are totally your subordinate. The factory actually getting occupied is rare but possible. More likely is that you just won't be able to do anything productive with what you produce there.
Still, if Germany is too aggressive and you just want a factory for the extra tax revenue, Brest is a decently safe spot to put it.
Marseilles
It has the usual problem of a fleet factory vulnerable by land. Additionally, it's an aggressive play against Italy, which is exactly the country that it's vulnerable too. As usual it's an option as a play to annoy Italy or to make France intentionally dependent on Italy's kindness.
England
Every factory in England is fairly safe, although of course motivated attacks can succeed, and attacks are often motivated because England can otherwise frequently run away with it.
London
This is the better of your starting two factories. It's unfortunately vulnerable by sea from two sea zones, but England can often control these.
Liverpool
The second starting factory is also England's least useful. Ships leaving it go to the North Atlantic, which is rarely contested, and doesn't allow convoying to anywhere directly. Other than claiming the tax marker for the North Atlantic in the first round, ships from Liverpool usually have to move twice before they're useful. Still, it's better than nothing. It's also almost never going to be occupied for the same reasons as its limited usefulness.
Sheffield
I sometimes like to build England's only army factory as the 3rd factory, to make up for not starting with one. But unlike the other powers, where there's one factory I build first more than half the time, for England, the 3rd factory depends a lot on the circumstances. If both France and Germany are enemies, you probably want a fleet factory instead. You could build armies, but chances are they won't have many places to go.
If you build Sheffield, it's usually the first occupied if your defenses in the North Sea collapse, but that doesn't happen too often.
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is likely your first choice if you want a fleet factory, especially if Germany is your enemy. You need to constantly keep fighting the attrition in the North Sea. Just like Sheffield, if your North Sea defense does break down, it can be occupied. It could also be occupied from the "back door" via the North Atlantic, but that's very unusual.
Dublin
Dublin is a less likely pick than Edinburgh. You already have a factory that launches ships into the North Atlantic. However, if France is your enemy and Germany is not, and you expect that to stay true for a good while, then Dublin can be the right pick. It's also even harder to occupy than Liverpool, though you don't usually choose it for that reason. All of England's factories are difficult to occupy. If they can occupy any of them, they can probably occupy London, so defensibility is mainly only a consideration if they are aggressive enough to try to occupy two factories or more.
Germany
Germany has some decent spots for factories, but often isn't built up enough to make use of them.
Berlin
Actually one of Germany's worst spots is its capital. It's a close race whether Vienna or Berlin is the most frequently blown-up starting factory. It's only vulnerable from Austria, but Austria is often aggressive.
Hamburg
This isn't too often occupied, because it's only directly vulnerable by sea against England, who often don't have armies to spare. It's also difficult to use, like Brest, because England doesn't want to see your fleets in the North Sea.
Cologne
This is a better location for an army factory than Berlin, and usually your 3rd factory. It doesn't border any foreign great powers. Armies are usually what Germany wants, since they have land borders with three other great powers and a lot of need to defend and potential to attack by land.
Gdansk
If you want an extra fleet factory, Gdansk is your option. It's vulnerable to Russia and Austria. Austria is not threatened by it, so they might leave it alone, and Russia is not always interested in the northern front. In that case, you might want extra fleets if you are trying to combat England. Gdansk can produce them, though they take a couple turns to get into action.
Munich
Munich is on the face of it severely worse than Cologne, being vulnerable from both France and Austria. It would only be used as a way to strengthen Germany by a calculated amount, a little but not too much. Particularly if you control France and/or Austria, and want the effectiveness of the Munich factory to depend on your whims, it's a good spot.
Russia
Russia's starting factories are both quite safe by distance. Their new factories are all vulnerable, but some not untenably so.
Moscow
It does not border any foreign great powers, nor even any neutral territories. It is the best-protected factory on the map outside of England. Only overwhelming force has a chance to occupy it.
Odessa
Russia's fleet factory has pretty much no chance of being invaded by sea. It's three sea zones remote from any other great power's borders. It's rare for any country besides Russia to even control the Black Sea, since Russia has about three more turns than them to outgun them. Even if another power got a fleet in the Black Sea, they'd have to also be able to do a convoy and catch Russia with Odessa unoccupied. I think I've never seen it happen.
On the other hand, it's not unusual for it to get occupied by land, either through Kiev or Romania. Still, it's better defended than most factories.
It's also quite useful. The single ship built there can usually control the Black Sea and the Eastern Mediterranean uncontested for the first three rounds or so.
Kiev
Kiev is the usual choice for the 3rd factory. If you are friends with Austria, then it's safe. If you're not friends with Austria, then you're going to need the extra armies.
It is worth mentioning, though, that Kiev is the most frequently blown-up new factory in the game. There's no reason that title wouldn't go to Warsaw except that it's less frequently built in the first place.
St. Petersburg
It's nice to have fleets up north, but often a one-time or two-time import is a better way to go. The factory is vulnerable to Germany, which at the same time is one of the countries likely to be in competition with it.
Sometimes I build the St. Petersburg factory if I mainly want a factory for revenue, and is Austria is unfriendly but weak. I don't really need extra army production in the long term, but I don't want to deal with guerilla attacks by a small Austrian force in Kiev or Warsaw.
Warsaw
Warsaw is apparently strictly worse than Kiev. It can be attacked by Austria or Germany. In exactly the same way as Prague can sometimes be the better choice for Austria, though, Warsaw can sometimes be the better choice for Russia, if you also control Germany. Germany can liberate Warsaw from attacks by Austria, or if you lose the priority ownership of Russia, you can use Germany to weaken Russia by attacking Warsaw.
In summary, Austria has only one really secure factory position, though with grit they can sustain four factories. Italy has three secure positions. The other two are very vulnerable and basically inviable. France has three secure positions and one more acceptable one. All five of England's regions are highly defensible. Germany has three secure locations but using the others is manageable. Russia has two very secure starting factories. The other three locations are all somewhat vulnerable, but workable.