• I propose giving a giving each Allied player, except China and France, a technology to start the game, and then tech would be closed for the rest of the game. Each countries technology would be:

    Russia: Advanced Artillery (Artillery can support 2 infantry units)

    United States: Improved Shipyards (Cost of transports, destroyers, and subs reduced by 1, and the cost of battleships, cruisers, and carriers are reduced by 3)

    United Kingdom: Radar (All Anti-Aircraft fire is increased to 2, up from 1)

    UK Pacific: War Bonds (Roll a die at the end of your turn and collect the amount rolled)

    Anzac: Increased factory production (Minor Industrial complexes can now produce 4 and Major Industrial complexes can now produce 12)

    The average “guaranteed value” this bid gives is +14 IPC’s every turn. US will save anywhere from 8-12 a turn with Shipyards and UK pacific will get an average of 3.5 more IPC’s than normal because of War Bonds. The Russian tech is a decent buff. I still don’t see how Russia can ever counter attack a German force though. The UK Radar bid will make it easier to defend against a possible sea lion, and makes defending Egypt and India more feasible. I don’t see the Anzac tech doing much, but I do recall games where I wish I could build 4 units.

  • '14 Customizer

    Although it does give Russia some teeth I would rather have the war bonds for extra defense.

  • '19 '17 '16

    This strengthens the Allies far too much.


  • @simon33:

    This strengthens the Allies far too much.

    You might be right, but as it stands right now this board is a complete joke IMO. I only play LL games, as I hate making a good move and getting screwed by dice, and in LL the axis are just ridiculous. The European side of the board is just too easily defensible for Germany and Italy.

    Try going all land purchases for Germany 2-6 and then land in Ukraine/Leningrad and bombers at home. Italy builds 2 mechs first turn and then builds all land. This way Germany doesn’t have to use much to defend the homeland other than planes. Italy is the defense and Germany is the offence. Japan after turn 1 just builds 80% fleet/air and 20% land. Stall US for as long as possible, and in LL it takes 7 rounds of full buys in the pacific for US to be able to really do anything vs a competent Japan. It’s too strong and I don’t think the normal bid system really works because the allies make relatively too little compared to the axis. That is because the axis don’t need to protect massive amounts of transports and have great strategic positions, like German planes in West Germany, and Japans fleet off Philippines. Germany can just slow roll Russia and make the Moscow attack an absolute blowout around turn 9 having 30-60 ground left. All these ground, plus 9 units built a turn in Russia, then pour south to take Egypt. The allies strategic position is too difficult to for them to mount a good second front early enough to stop this play. Remember that around turn 9 Italy will have over 40 land units in Europe defending Southern Italy and Western Germany.

  • Customizer

    So you don’t really go offensive at all with Italy?
    I always try to have them make some headway in Africa. In most of our games, any Allied naval presence in the Med is pretty much extinct due to Italian navy and some German air support.  So Italy will get the Med bonus.  In fact, that’s why I usually welcome a Taranto raid as Italy.  Yeah, it sucks losing that big, beautiful battleship plus 2 of 3 transports, but it usually wipes out the Royal navy in the process and takes a good chunk of the RAF with it.  Then once you deal with the French ships, Italy rules the Med.
    France can’t buy any more ships, UK is busy building for possible Sealion and putting land units in South Africa and most times the US is busy with Japan so there is little Allied naval threat for Italy to worry about.
    Now, getting a decent force over to Africa with just 1 transport is a challenge, but at the very least it keeps the UK occupied while Germany pounds at Russia.
    We have had games where either UK puts more into navy and ships it to the Med or the US sends a naval presence there.  With Italy’s small income they can’t compete too much.  When this happens, Italy will start just buying all infantry to pile up in Rome and move around the coastal territories.


  • It depends on Italy’s situation turn 2. Turn 1 I almost always build 2 mech. There isn’t much an allied fleet can do in the med. Germany can easily blow it up unless it is really large, and if it is large then they are loosing out on building ground forces. Think about it. When Germany takes the slow route with dealing with Russia he will have so many troops/production left that can all go for Egypt that the allies are faced with a really impossible situation.

    Italy building almost all ground (mainly inf after turn 1) means that Germany doesn’t have to build infantry in Germany or Western Germany for a long while, and instead can build just art/mech/bombers to go against Russia. A large allied fleet with 10 American transports stationed off Gibraltar isn’t nearly as scary when you have 30-50 Italians able to defend against it.

  • Customizer

    So, unless the Allies just really “screw the pooch” in the Med/Africa, you pretty much just keep Italy building defense and forget about Africa for the time being?
    I can understand this when you’re going for an overall Axis win.  Got to have Germany pound the Russians and get Moscow and those other VCs.  Still, not a lot of income fun for Italy.  So much for “Restoring the Glory of Rome”.


  • LOL. I’m sorry it isn’t a “fun” strategy. I just find it to be the most efficient in the long run. :)

  • '19 '17 '16

    @theROCmonster:

    @simon33:

    This strengthens the Allies far too much.

    You might be right, but as it stands right now this board is a complete joke IMO. I only play LL games, as I hate making a good move and getting screwed by dice, and in LL the axis are just ridiculous. The European side of the board is just too easily defensible for Germany and Italy.

    I still think it’s possible to defend Moscow, although I haven’t proven it.

    Most difficult is with a J4 DOW. That keeps the US out of it. But you still have a bunch of UK and perhaps even ANZAC fighters which can fly in to Moscow for a G5 attack if needed. It also means that the US can’t take Norway, and that has to be left for the USSR/UK to achieve.

    Strategic bombing on WGermany and Germany from Norway make it expensive to reinforce the Russian front from the German main factories, best done by the US. If Germany is being weakened enough by the other allies, USSR is gaining strength relative to Germany. Holding Leningrad is pretty important for this to work though, otherwise they can have 3 minor factories which they haven’t even had to build, rivalling USSR’s one major factory.


  • I was rethinking this and maybe it would be better if the US, UK pacific, and Anzac technologies didn’t kick in till they were at war with Japan.

    Honestly if they just made the map a little better by:

    1. Not having 110 and 109 connected, but instead made 110 connected to 104, 111, and 112. This would allow UK to possibly build ships in 109 because fighters/tacs wouldn’t be able to go from Western Germany to 109 and land without having a carrier.

    2. Not having Western Germany and Northern Italy connected. Just have Greater Southern Germany extend all the way to Switzerland, so that planes in western Germany couldn’t land in Alexandria or Egypt. Also Germany couldn’t just build mechs in Western Germany that can, on the next turn, go down and defend Southern Italy. The defense of mainland Germany would be harder for the axis.

    3. Removing the major IC in Germany’s capital, and replacing it with a minor. Also add a minor IC to Greater Southern Germany. This would lessen the total number of troops Germany as a nation could build, and Germany would be take more planning to defend. You can’t build a reactionary 10 infantry for defense if you need it, instead you’ll be able to build only 3. In total Germany’s starting territories would be able to build 16 units a turn, instead of 20.

    4. Changing Strategic Bombers attack to 2, instead of 4. This makes bombers less powerful for ground and sea battles. The attack on Moscow will be less, and Allied fleets would have a much easier time defending their transports. In other words Germany building 4 bombers a turn late game is no longer an automatically great buy. Also Japans first turn attacks become a little weaker.

    5. Allowing Minor IC’s to be built on islands. This would really help the Allies in the Pacific. I guess Japan could then build an IC in the Philippines, but is that really that good?

    6. Making Russia worth 5, instead of 3. This would give USSR 2 more IPC’s to spend every turn. Increasing their defense against an overwhelming German attack.

    7. Making the US NO, while at war, for having control of EUS, WUS, and CUS worth 15, instead of 10. This would make Japan a little more hesitant about a turn 1 attack. Also US is desperately hurting for income in this game because of how much fleet he needs to build. An extra 5 would help a lot while not making any new broken mechanics.

    8. Making only planes in the territory that produces the carrier be able to place fighters/tacs on a newly placed carrier. So you couldn’t end your non combat movement phase with a fighter/tac in a sea zone that doesn’t have a carrier. One annoying problem is that either the axis or allies can, at any time, use fighters/tacs that otherwise couldn’t reach a territory or sea zone to be able to reach it if you purchase a carrier. The ability to finish your turn in a sea zone increases the implied threat from planes too much, IMO.

  • Customizer

    theROCmonster,
    Every one of those proposed changes makes it easier on the Allies and harder on the Axis.  All of them together makes it seem like you are trying to unbalance the game in the Allies favor.
    I think that you have played Allies and gotten your butt kicked by Axis players too often and are just showing sour grapes.


  • Lol. Ya I am just tired of some of the broken mechanics of this map. :/

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