Share your strategies » Forum Post by T-Man

level 1 and level 2 Hqs both give the same bang for the buck, while level 3s though much more expensive have more return. Level 3s also give a political operative, which can be used to increase awareness in another state if moved. The key to winning is money.

Build up headquarters in most of the states you need to win while fundraising in the richest, run ads in those states, in any given time when you run low on money, fly to any state where your poll numbers are lacking and give speeches.

focus on level 3s in the biggest states in the beginning, and try to not waste a single point of stamina (build capital, move operatives, VP, etc. to use it well). A social security TV ad early on in FL also helps. When I play against the computer, I build up level 3s in big states (15+ EV), and sprinkle a few level 1s around medium sized states until around week 30-32. Then I go to a fairly large state that I am behind in, blast them with TV ads, and come back both in that state and nationally. Also, don't forget about endorsements. Foreign Policy is the most important, followed by unions or CoB. I usually get around half of them (most of the dem ones, and NFPC and CoB). This strategy seems to work reliably for me against the computer (I used it to beat Nixon with McGovern on Masochistic).

I disagree with the idea of building Level 3 Campaign HQs. They do not yield more bang for the buck. (Each $250,000 spent yields $10,000 income per turn.) The big, closely contested states will reach 100% awareness well before election day with only a 1-Level HQ, assuming you campaign in them. Once 100% awareness is attained, HQs have only a money benefit, not a vote-generating one. (If your awareness is lagging, rush in a consultant for a few turns to goose it up.) The Operative generated by a Level-3 HQ is slightly useful, but it only adds 1 awareness point per turn (vs 4 for a consultant) and, unlike the consultant, requires a fatigue point to move from state to state. The only reason I ever build a Level-3 HQ is if I have a webmaster and movie director in the state and want to access more issues for my national ads. It may make sense to build one Level-3 Consulting Office and one Level-3 Outreach Center, but that's a different topic.

Also, building only Level-1 HQs allows you to build them in many more states, and they will make much more difference in the mid-sized states which receive very few campaign visits. Your travel budget and fatigue are slightly greater, but your future income stream is the same; and the nationwide awareness benefit is much greater (since it can never exceed 100% in any state).

I was thinking about building HQ's at work today (slow day) and I came up with this. If we're talking money only and forget about awareness for the moment, a level 1 and level 2 campaign HQ will pay for itself in 25 turns. A level 3 HQ will pay for itself in 20 turns.

A level 1 HQ costs $250k and gives $10k a turn, so thats 25 turns for it to generate $250k.
A level 2 HQ costs $250k + $500k and gives $30k a turn, so thats another 25 turns for it to generate $750k.
A level 3 HQ costs $250k + $500k + $1,000k and gives $90k a turn. It will pay for itself in 19.444... turns so it begins turning a profit at turn 20.

So this is something to keep in mind if you're a big spender, particularly in the late half of the game.

Still playing my first game, no strategies yet. I do like mixing Campaign HQs with Outreach centers to get both money and political points.

California rules for fundraising. If you get the special guy that raises your fundraising, parking him in California or NY seems to be a winning strategy for when you need to blow through to make money.

Does anyone know if fundraising in a suboptimal (money wise) state give you any other benefits?

Tomthebitx is right that Level-3 HQ's are the most cost-effective for generating $. I was wrong before to say they were equivalent. However, I still don't think they are a good bet in most game situations. You can't "forget about awareness," since turnout is vital to holding your base states and winning some of the swing states. Since awareness can't go above 100%, much of the awareness from Level-3 HQ's will be wasted. The Republican candidate in particular needs to win lots of small states. That requires either many Level-1 HQs, or consultants generated by consulting HQs (which yield no money), or better yet a combination of the two. If you spend most of your dough on Level-3 HQs, you will be at a crippling disadvantage in small and medium state turnout.
Tom's strategy might make sense for a candidate with lots of starting dough and very poor fundraising ability. It may also make sense to build one Level-3 HQ in a state you intend where you have planted a webmaster and ideally a movie director because Level-3 gives you access to every issue for advertising purposes. Still, I think the Level-3 Campaign HQ should be the rare exception.

Justin, After you deploy your money man, leave him on your clipboard until you are ready to use him. Remember that awareness level in the state and national popularity also affect how much money you will raise. When you do plunk him down, most likely in California, start your fundraising right away. I generally devote two full game turns to it. Otherwise, a fixer may deprive you of the money man. When I see an opponent's money man sitting in a good state, I immediately zap him with a fixer.
I don't think fundraising generates any other benefits, but late in the game - if you are strapped for cash - you many want to fundraise in any moderately wealthy state in which you find yourself with only 3 fatigue points left. NY and TX can be very good, and IL, PA and FL aren't too bad.