Differnt starting dates for the global game

I wish I could play like that! :)

I know that this is a variant, but just wanted to give a brief review of the G42 variant in my Games 94 and 95, here is a link to the canon  :wink: version that I think breathes some new life into the game and the outstandingly designed board/map:

http://axisandallies.wikia.com/wiki/File:G42setup2013424.pdf

The beauty of this scenario is that many of the ‘Cadillac’ extra factories and naval and air bases have been removed from the game, so it makes strategic bombing much more viable and abusive against the Axis.  Germany has to be much more careful how it builds (in terms of +2 turns out planning) and Japan has to avoid losing 1 of its 2 (not 3-4) major fleets.

Also, many of the extra infantry and much of the fleet depth have been removed from the G40 setup, which means that production is more important than the starting pieces at the beginning of the game.

Overall, Germany is on the strategic defensive.  The turn order has been altered, which makes the strategic initiative operate in the Allies favor.  Huge back and forth battles in the steppe and marsh and islands and canals lead to a battle of attrition and placement.

The game has no diplomacy, and starts with everyone at war and the Axis near threshold income (50-60), so it is somewhat faster than G40 to get to the good stuff.    The Axis still have tons of planes and ships but are much curtailed so they have to make more focused choices in order to win.

New NOs and placements make the med, SE pacific, East russia and africa more dynamic areas of conflict.  Hackneyed openers are out forcing you to think dynamically, though the Allies still start with plenty of stacks so the Axis has to attack.

Have fun good luck. Taam

Agree with Ike here: it really depends on what the rest of the board looks like.

Some options from my own experience:
1. If Moscow falls G9 this means Germany has channeled a lot of resources east.
Strong counter for the allies is to land 40+ units in western Europe. Most likely even Western Germany and then push back west (liberating France) and south (taking out Italy). In the meantime Berlin should be maxed out every turn. Of course Japan must also be prevented a win in the Pacific first priority (defensive spending).
If the allies went ‘Japan First’, this option may not be available to you since it requires minimal spending in the Pacific (i.e. a defensive budget rather than an offensive one).

2. If Moscow falls G9 after the allies went ‘Japan First’ (assuming Caïro is still allied controlled), the allies must of course start channeling more untis into Caïro/Middle East than the axis can. And/or into London, depending on what the axis targets are. Hopefully they are able to do so and start pushing the axis back. Alternatively you can try to liberate another VC. If the allies can build up a huge invasion force/shuck from Gibraltar, they have the flexibility to try to liberate Paris or aid the defense of Caïro.
Defeating Germany after Moscow fell with no meaningful allied threat in the west already in place is no small thing to do…

As the Axis I have noticed that hunting down VC’s too aggressively really means putting their heads on the block (like in option 1 above). IMHO for the axis it is best to be patient. Aim to stabilize economic balance and then jump in the gap the allies have left you. A few examples:

3. If the allies go Europe First (while still preventing Japan a 6VC win), Germany best prevent the allied landings at all costs. This takes away a LOT of resources from the eastern front so Moscow should be safe (except when Russia built too much ‘wrong’ units). In Russia, Germany + Italy need to aim for a defensive perimeter as far eastwards as possible in order to be able to contest or defend rich Russian territories.
Japan should secure India if it doesn’t already have it under control and then make a deep strategic calculation (4/5 turns ahead); will it be possible to grab Hawaii/Sydney if the USA defends it with all its resources while Japan goes all-in to take it and hold it? Will Japan also be able to hold all other VC’s? Could Japan ‘trick’ the USA and then suddenly swing east when it is too late or is the USA-player a bit Pacific-ignorant and do you think he/she will continue that?
If Yes, go grab this last VC. Otherwise, just match the allied (USA) forces and offensive spendings in the Pacific and send the rest to contest the Middle East/Africa. From India (Naval Base), Japan can invade Africa in 1 turn. If Japan cannot take it, can Japan convoy it? I once lost too many indian ships too soon and as a result, got convoyed all the way from the Persian Gulf to the Brazilian coast by Japanese submarines…

I could go on and on with options, particularly about allied strategies for late game ‘JF’ course of events and the axis responses but I think other players have more experience with this and I already wrote quite enough for now ;-).

True… but if Japan’s choices are destroy the american pacific fleet, destroy the joint indian/chinese army, or destroy the russian army- they probably kill american fleet utterly, buying them several turns of dominance in the sea to systematically win asia.

http://www.harrisgamedesign.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=9936

I attacked Russia G1 today, the axis lost, but I wouldn’t blame the German strategy for it. I would do it again for sure. Sorry for the lame report, but it’s past my bed time.

@LHoffman:

That’s pretty good for someone with little professed talent.

I do like the Stukas and US carriers especially.

Did you use decals for the stars on the carriers?

thanks mate… Yes, that is decals on the carriers… But on some units I paint the star… But thats a bit tricky :)

iphone/ipod app updated. looks good so far. well done.