Alternative balance solution to bidding

@Arthur-Bomber-Harris said in Bids:

@tmartin the crazy thing is that the game doesn’t feel that much different even with ~40PU bid. The Allies will more easily control the Atlantic, Med, and Africa. China will be more difficult to exterminate. Moscow will survive for a few more turns.

Otherwise the Axis can proceed as normal with India and Moscow eventually falling due to the overwhelming power of Axis air power.

The game changes dramatically at 60 PUs when China becomes so powerful they can drive Japan off of mainland Asia (or least credibly threaten that).

I find the bid conversation quite fascinating.

Given what you say, wouldn’t that possibly be a sign the bids are being used in the wrong place? If controlling the Med/Africa doesn’t prevent the Axis key path to victory shouldn’t more of the bid be spent in maybe China/USSR instead?

We played with dice, not low luck.

Not that I ever bid before but if we would I think your restrictions sound very good.
If I ever bid I think I bid Germany for +8 (destroyer in 113 or 114 and then go SL ;-)) or UK +7 (TRS in SA with the DD).

knp7765

Axis and allies has changed over the decades I have been playing. Probably 30 years. But one thing has not, the basics. And it makes sense since they are trying to stay true to what happened, in the sense of what the situation really was at a given point in time. Thereby, the fact remains that the real action is in Europe and whoever wins Europe wins the war.

Britain and Russia cannot, unless playing a weak German player hold off the Germans long enough for Japan to be neutralize much less defeated. And if they could, then the resources spent on neutralizing Japan only means the allies would have won much earlier if those resources were spent in Europe.

Now before everyone goes crazy on me and makes arguments that you just can’t completely and totally ignore Japan and give me all kinds of examples on how the old KGF strategy would not work in the newest editions, understand, I am not arguing a complete ignore of Japan, only enough resources to help Anzac, India, and China slow them down. Essentially, defensive in the Pacific and the offensive in Europe.

That part of the game has not changed EXCEPT, that with the Victory cities only requiring Japan to hold 6 of them, forces the US to go offensive in the Pacific.

That is why I do not like it. It forces in unrealistic and ineffective strategy.

3 boats a turn on the Atlantic side or the pacific side?

Pacific.  He was speaking of the type of Navy that could get built up between Anzac and US with a late DOW.  Without pulling guys from the Atlantic, US can’t put a ton of guys on the Pacific in those first 3 turns.  Just to match the Japan Navy the US needs 2 more carriers, 1 battleship, 1 destroyer.  That’s  60 ipcs.  In my opinion, US needs more navy since they need to be the attackers.  That would require neglecting the atlantic almost entirely (which isn’t an awful idea depending on how good the German player is).  That also doesn’t take into account that Japan buys a Carrier and can load it without spending the 20-21 ipcs for fighters.  The Naval bases also allow for 3 more fighters to defend if used correctly.

as bidding is not a part of the official game, bid rules differ upon who is playing.

i have played hundreds of games of triplea live in the lobby and pbem(play by e-mail) in the old triplea ladder ranking, the vast majority of games i have played are revised, some global, and very few anniversary.  below is what i have seen.

the most common rules that i have played with(near universal amongst triplea players) is
1. bid ipcs can be used to place units pregame
2. units can only be placed in territories or seazones that already have a unit of the same power

rules that i have seen frequently
1. only one bid unit per territory or seazone
2. bid for the alliance that you think is disadvantaged and bid down. (i prefer to use the method used at conventions of bidding for your opponent to play the disadvantaged alliance and bid up.)

rules i have never played or been asked to use but have seen
1. all bid ipc must be spent in units and not added to any powers starting income
2. no bid units to certain powers(such as china)

Good find Fire Knight but I already found it a few days ago. I’m waiting now for a 1942 setup.

alright! haha