Axis and Allies Express: Links

A video tutorial on how to play Xmas & Allies - a variant game for the festive season. Check the link below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dSkN73CYLI&lc=Ugwk0Cqq9-QuRibxxSd4AaABAg

Hope you all have a merry Christmas!

@Midnight_Reaper Thank you for the reply.

First 2 games were with the Norse pieces but me and the friends are looking into making a few zombie rule changes with the Norse pieces.

@SS-GEN Thanks for the reply!

Yeah, I’ve adopted that Vichy idea in other games in the past, essentially for the 1940 games. It’s simple, but adds some unknowns, and stays true to history. When the Allies landed in Torch, they had no idea what to expect from the French forces. While not much blood was shed against them, there were varying degrees of French resistance to the landings, from surrendering immediately, to straight up changing sides, to fighting back with all they had. So I’ve done a simple rule: once the Allies attack a Vichy territory, you roll a dice for each unit. 1-3 they become Allied, 4-6 they become Axis (were neutral before) and fight back. You do this for each territory as it’s attacked, helping with the uncertainty of what different garrisons might do. If the Axis move into Vichy territories at all, the French forces fight against them immediately.

Anyways, I’m getting off track :)

So yes, the Vichy aspect would be part of this, on top of the rest.

I agree with you, you couldn’t go too far out of Africa. I wouldn’t envision this game going any further North than Rome. Maybe even just to Reggio di Calabria at the tip of the boot even. That was only a thought if the Mediterranean wanted to be used at all. This would still encompass Sicily and Malta, so that would still be interesting. If not, I say just a map of North Africa, stretching from Morocco to Cairo, or Tunisia to Cairo, depending on the time line preferred.

So sounds like, by your omission of mentioning the USA, you’re in favor of an early war scenario?

Given that my thought process here is an A&A official game, I don’t think hexes is envisioned here. I think Battle of the Bulge does that, but again, have not played. I suppose you could, but I’d be in favor of what you say, chopping up territories into multiple smaller ones.

I think a one round of combat situation would work for this game. A lot of North African fights weren’t as drawn out as in other theaters (save some of the more famous ones). To that end, I’d even say one round of combat, then everyone disengages until the next round. The dessert made communications hard, I think this would well simulate that small tactical battles that had to happen.

Again, given the scope of an A&A game, I don’t know well how weather or terrain may fit into the mold. I think you maybe have something done to simulate the dessert. Whether that be no blitzing for combat, affecting free moving, etc., but not sure. But that’s part of why I’ve posted here! To see what others may think! I agree, lost to consider here, though the guys on this forum are usually up for that :)

@gderick13:

ah ok so, nobody knows when this map will be available?

The dude who posted this thread here hasn’t logged in since April.
So, nobody knows.

@Ttfno:

Nope. Too bad there are no actual Axis and allies style WW1 game. As A 1914 sucks too.

A&A 1914 isn’t so bad.
It’s not as good as I’d like it to be.
But it ain’t bad.

I sort of wonder how printing out The Great War map from TripleA and playing that board would be like.

@georgemak1:

A question for the HBG crew. Any idea when the next German set is due?

November

Very nice rules and map!
What program did you use to create this map?

no way. That map is bigger than huge.

for the most part I like 'em - except it adds A LOT of complication & new stuff to the game. (Stalinist paranoia and the China rules, for example). Being sort-of opposed to IC’s in general and the somewhat long-ish ranges that fighters can potentially have, I gobbled up those rules pretty quickly. …mostly though, I borrowed a lot of the ideas to make simpler versions of these rules.