• I’ve seen a LOT of complaints about the game, are there any house rules that could possibly fix them?


  • Institute rail lines. Devise rules for gas attacks. Fix up the American entry rules. Askaris in Africa(Flashman’s idea, not mine). Put a German cruiser off East Africa.

    That’s what I’ll be doing, anyway.


  • Depends on seeing the complete Rules-I’ll throw in Moral,Blockade effects,stragetic movement (Rails),
    Gas (for sure) & beefed up Navies.


  • The gaming aid and house rule that all Axis & Allies games would profit from:
    A timer for each player with penalties when they go over time.


  • Trouble is we have so many various voices on the house rule issue we are going to end up with a cobbled together mess of overcomplicated historical nitpickings and useless trappings that no one ruleset will become popular.

    Flash will have a version thats overcomplicated and has so many rail rules you will need to draw them on with a sharpie.
    Others will have rules that require you to cannibalize pieces from 6 other A&A ganes.

    I want a simple, no more than a page long, set of “intermediate” level house rules to make it feel more fun (not hyper realistic) Tech. Rails, but simple! (some units can move double distance each turn) maybe a simple morale system. A fix to the US entry and perhaps some National Objectives.

    If we want an AA14HistoricalEdition it doesn’t need a rule book longer than the one that comes in the box!

    Hell, who am I kidding……this house rules issue is going to boil down into some hellish overcomplicated mess no one will use, but will appreciate for its justice to history.

    We need something Larry style. Small changes, like how 1940 became Alpha3


  • @oztea:

    Trouble is we have so many various voices on the house rule issue we are going to end up with a cobbled together mess of overcomplicated historical nitpickings and useless trappings that no one ruleset will become popular.

    Flash will have a version thats overcomplicated and has so many rail rules you will need to draw them on with a sharpie.
    Others will have rules that require you to cannibalize pieces from 6 other A&A ganes.

    I want a simple, no more than a page long, set of “intermediate” level house rules to make it feel more fun (not hyper realistic) Tech. Rails, but simple! (some units can move double distance each turn) maybe a simple morale system. A fix to the US entry and perhaps some National Objectives.

    If we want an AA14HistoricalEdition it doesn’t need a rule book longer than the one that comes in the box!

    Hell, who am I kidding……this house rules issue is going to boil down into some hellish overcomplicated mess no one will use, but will appreciate for its justice to history.

    We need something Larry style. Small changes, like how 1940 became Alpha3

    All right, all right, listen to these and tell me what you think:

    Rail Lines: All land units may move up to three spaces provided they start in an uncontested friendly territory. They may not move through a non-friendly or contested territory, though they may end their movement in one. This rule applies only to Europe.

    Gas Attacks: Once per turn starting on turn 3, countries can promote 1 extra attacking infantry in one territory only to the “Infantry with Supporting Artillery” box for each artillery in the territory.

    American Entry: American units may not leave SZ1 or the USA until at war, and income is halved.

    Königsberg: Germany starts with a cruiser off East Africa.

    Askaris: Flashy-boy can explain this one.

  • Customizer

    Rail: units should not be able to rail into combat, though you can reinforce an army in a contested area where you are not attacking this turn. It took time for units to detrain and move up to the front.

    Askaris: Each country has a maximum 6 IPC colonial unit allowance.
    Mainly this will involve placing infantry in Africa, though only one per owned tt.

    I suggest African (and Arabian) units cost 2, and fight at 1/2 in attack and 2/3 in defence. They must always be accompanied by at least one regular infantry unit, which must always be the last casualty. Otherwise they desert. Colonial units must be so designated when units are purchased, and they can only be placed in tts you controlled at the start of your turn.

    Commonwealth

    UK may also place regular infantry units in India, Canada & South Africa.

    Normally this will be infantry, though they can place a fighter in India (I would allow a transport in SZ 29) representing Australian industry. Possibly also allow a transport to be built in Canada.

    Regular colonial units have the same cost and stats as home produced pieces. They still count as part of the UKs colonial spend.

    I suggest using Black German WWII units for Askaris.


  • @Flashman:

    I suggest using Black German WWII units for Askaris.

    Racist.
    No, I’m kidding, but I think if the rules are as simple as that (The Askaris could be trimmer), I could see being in favor, though we’ll have to see the real game as is first. The gas attacks is brilliantly simple. The rails similarly so. The cruiser should help with the India Problem


  • ALL units cant move by rail. Not enough cars, too much movement.
    The limit is the IPC value of your capital.


  • Rail movement: Units in your capital territory can move 2 or 3 spaces. The limit of units you can move per turn is the IPC value of your capital.

  • Customizer

    @texasranger97:

    Rail movement: Units in your capital territory can move 2 or 3 spaces. The limit of units you can move per turn is the IPC value of your capital.

    I like it. The only thing I would add is this:
    Units in any capital territory can move 2 or 3 spaces.

    This will address Flashman’s concern about units moving back from Moscow, as conquered capitals can now be used as rail hubs as well as one’s own capital.


  • The only house rules I think would be necessary to make the game better (not perfect but better) would be as follows.

    1. No one can invade non-aligned neutral powers.

    2. Tanks do not become available until turn 5

    3. Fighters do not become available until turn 3 (or maybe 2 but at that point what’s the difference)

    4. The US can not declare war (unless attacked or unrestricted sub warfare) until turn 6, and can’t leave the US tt

    5. The Russian capitol is in Petrograd not Moscow (and adjust the Russian Rev rules to reflect this)

    that would be it for me, this is all I would change to make the game better.


  • @Clyde85:

    The only house rules I think would be necessary to make the game better (not perfect but better) would be as follows.

    1. No one can invade non-aligned neutral powers.

    2. Tanks do not become available until turn 5

    3. Fighters do not become available until turn 3 (or maybe 2 but at that point what’s the difference)

    4. The US can not declare war (unless attacked or unrestricted sub warfare) until turn 6, and can’t leave the US tt

    5. The Russian capitol is in Petrograd not Moscow (and adjust the Russian Rev rules to reflect this)

    that would be it for me, this is all I would change to make the game better.

    Turn 6 for the USA?  Wow with 8 players (7 active if the US doesn’t do anything), you are probably looking at a minimum hour/turn (8 players in an hour).  You really want it to be 6 hours before the US can even move, much less 7-8 hours before they can fight?  I understand the US had a much delayed entry into the war, but they don’t make very much money and they have to ship everything over, so they won’t have a large effect on the war as it is.

  • Customizer

    Do not play this game with 8 players.

    Maximum should be 7, with one player controlling Allied Russia & the US.

    Re: Clyde85 House Rules:

    1. No Swiss Roll? Actually, the only NANs in the game who were invaded were Greece and Persia.

    Greece is a strange case in that the King was pro-German, while the government was pro-Allied.

    Arguably Persia should be aligned to the Russians (North) and British (South) who had effectively partitioned the country.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Russian_Convention_of_1907#The_Anglo-Russian_Convention_of_1907.5B1.5D

    3. Depends on how air combat works. Major powers had aircraft in 1914, but they were not fighters. They nevertheless performed the artillery spotting role.

    The best idea is to start with basic planes which have a 1-1 combat ability, with each year of the war introducing more powerful fighters rising to 4-4.

    5. Moving capital to Petrograd must be accompanied by some form of rail movement otherwise Russia will not be able to reinforce the southern tts quickly enough.

    @BJCard:

    @Clyde85:

    The only house rules I think would be necessary to make the game better (not perfect but better) would be as follows.

    1. No one can invade non-aligned neutral powers.

    2. Tanks do not become available until turn 5

    3. Fighters do not become available until turn 3 (or maybe 2 but at that point what’s the difference)

    4. The US can not declare war (unless attacked or unrestricted sub warfare) until turn 6, and can’t leave the US tt

    5. The Russian capitol is in Petrograd not Moscow (and adjust the Russian Rev rules to reflect this)

    that would be it for me, this is all I would change to make the game better.

    Turn 6 for the USA?  Wow with 8 players (7 active if the US doesn’t do anything), you are probably looking at a minimum hour/turn (8 players in an hour).  You really want it to be 6 hours before the US can even move, much less 7-8 hours before they can fight?  I understand the US had a much delayed entry into the war, but they don’t make very much money and they have to ship everything over, so they won’t have a large effect on the war as it is.


  • What about Tech? Is there some kind of simple Tech Tree that we could add?


  • Cavalry units from Risk could be used.  Maybe 1 att 2 def 2 move 4 cost.


  • @MeinFuhrer:

    Cavalry units from Risk could be used.  Maybe 1 att 2 def 2 move 4 cost.

    While we’re at it, let’s cannibalize Monopoly for armored cars and chess for attack clergy, eh?


  • How about stealing from Risk for a KISS version of rail movement (for those attracted to such simplicity):

    “Move as many units as you would like from one, and only one, of your territories into another. The two territories (the one you are moving from and the one you are moving to) need not be adjacent but there must be a safe “path” between them. This means that you must be able to travel from the first territory to the last through territories that you control. If you have to pass through an enemy territory or a neutral territory then you cannot use rail movement between the two territories.”

    The question of contested territories arises. Like Flashman, I feel players shouldn’t be able to rail move into battle. I would therefore advocate prohibiting a rail move ending in a contested territory or not allowing a player to attack in a contested territory that has received units via rail movement this turn.

    Alternatively, as in Risk, the rail move could come after all combat as been resolved, making it more like the fortifying movement it is in Risk. This way, reinforcements could be brought up to fortify contested areas or prepare for an offensive on a future turn, without worrying about rail movement unleashing sudden offensives with troops from the other side of the board.

    The other question that remains is whether to allow rail movement through contested territories. I have no problem with rail movement out of contested territories or into contested territories, but through? My first instinct is yes: rail networks existed behind the front lines.

    Thoughts?


  • @BJCard:

    Turn 6 for the USA?  Wow with 8 players (7 active if the US doesn’t do anything), you are probably looking at a minimum hour/turn (8 players in an hour).

    How would it take an hour for a turn? I think the closest we ever got to an hour for a full turn was turn one of Global 1940 but that’s about it. Remember, this game is going to be much more streamlined, there is only one movement phase (no combat and non-combat movement, just movement), and the combat phase is also simplified to one combat roll per-side (attacker and defender). Given this I don’t see how it would take anywhere near an hour to play even the first turn.

    Also, as Flashman stated, you should not be playing this game with 8 players, given that Russia can be knocked out of the war, and the US doesn’t enter until late, have one player control both.

    @BJCard:

    You really want it to be 6 hours before the US can even move, much less 7-8 hours before they can fight?  I understand the US had a much delayed entry into the war, but they don’t make very much money and they have to ship everything over, so they won’t have a large effect on the war as it is.

    The US declared war on the Central Powers on April 6th 1917 and the war ended on November 11th 1918, so the US was “at war” with Germany for a total of about 1 year, 7 months, and 5 days, so their involvement in World War 1 was very limited. Also, even though we declared war in 1917 US troops didn’t arrive in force or even engage in combat until the spring of 1918 (the minor incident in Cambrai not withstanding), So I don’t really see the need to include the US any earlier then turn 6th.

    IF we were going to be 100% honest with ourselves about it, American involvement in World War 1 was, at best, decisive but more anecdotal than anything else. The main reason the US is included in this game, and (IMHO) has to be included in they way they are, is because the game is being made by an American company for a largely American audience.


  • @Auztria:

    @MeinFuhrer:

    Cavalry units from Risk could be used.  Maybe 1 att 2 def 2 move 4 cost.

    While we’re at it, let’s cannibalize Monopoly for armored cars and chess for attack clergy, eh?

    LOL, I’m just set on having cavalry units.  Perhaps there are some that you can purchase on FMG or HBG, don’t know, but I do know I have a Risk game that hasn’t been played since I started playing A&A.

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