• My son got A&A (revised) for his birthday, and we’ve been trying play, but we’re pretty overwhelmed.  We’ve played a little Risk, and some other strategy games periodically, and I’ve played Civilization for years, but the complexity of this game had us both flummoxed.  I was hoping to get some advice on how to get started.  It seems like a ton of fun, but we just haven’t been able to gain any momentum.

    We got the box out and spent one night just trying to understand the rules and pop out all the cards and pieces and such.  After reading the rules a few times, reading around here at the forums and some strategy articles (then going back to the rules to understand them), and perusing the LHTR (I think I finally understand subs) I think I’ve got the basics well enough to explain it to the junior, so long as we keep the rules handy.  So the next week, we got it out again, but because we still weren’t quite sure what to do, we went for about 3 hours and managed to get through setting up the board, and played through the UK’s 1st turn. I was playing the Axis and was so confused by Japan’s options I knew we wouldn’t get through a full turn for quite some time more, so we packed it in again.  That’s two full evenings, and we hadn’t made it through one turn yet.  I am starting to believe we’re doing something wrong.

    I guess what I’m looking for is some help getting the game kick-started.  Are there hints to help us get set up and go faster?  Just managing the pieces, particularly during combat move was horrific.  Trying to plan out which planes could get to where and where they might land (and backtracking them when changing our mind), figuring out what to do with ships, and trying to determine how many units would be needed for each attack were very difficult for us.  Is this something we should just get better at over time, or are there any common tricks to help manage just the logistics of the turns.  Just so we set our expectations correctly: How long should a game take, considering that we’re still learning?  How about once we have played a time or two?

    HELP! If there are threads already covering this type of stuff, please point me in the right direction. This looks like so much fun, but we’re clueless.


  • About the boardgame, I understand you fully.
    I’ve been playing different versions of A&A for many years, but when I played the boardgame
    against a couple of friends a month ago, I just gave up. The board is too small, the units are too many and too big
    to fit physically, IMO.

    I guess your son already plays chess, that’s much easier to learn.
    A&A takes time.
    Time is on your side, and if have a lot of patience you will learn both rules and strategy.
    It’s very fun once you get going.
    Just keep reading, keep trying, keep failing, and keep going, and you will be the Greatest
    Emperor of the Neighbourhood   8-)


  • HELP! If there are threads already covering this type of stuff, please point me in the right direction. This looks like so much fun, but we’re clueless.

    Start with only Soviets and Germany at war. That way you don’t have to learn a bunch of naval rules and concentrate on the land mechanics first.

    Make the goal to take the others capital. Also give the soviets some extra IPC so its the same as Germany

    (both at 40 IPC)… the difference could be called lend lease and assumed as such. Now you have a little micro game that will not bog down the both of you.

    just play with the normal setup and leave out the naval and the other 3 nations. After thats mastered then add the naval units for the micro game “Barbarossa”, and lastly play with all 5 nations.


  • Imperious Leader gives a good advice.

    When you have started to manage the tecnic of unit moving you may consider a standard game. In theat case you should avoid to use research and National advantages.

    Set up may be made concurrently by the players. It is always the same so after few games you will start to remember where are the great part of the units.
    For mastering the game logistic the key is to use imagination. Try to plan ahead your moves, and using IL suggestion you should try to plan what to do without moving any pieces.
    If you have to move the pieces place the units on the border of the territory they come from (in order to be replaced there).
    For the planes there are some chips that may be used, they shows an aircraft and a number, use them to indicate residue movement points for the plane.
    For the battle initially you should use the battle board but after some games try to resolve battles without moving the unit from the board. It is quite simple: attacker throw dies in bunch for each unit type and count the hits. Then defender make the same.
    This thing togheter will speed up your game.
    But… not so much. We used to play A&A face to face on the board, and usually a complete round takes about 1 hours.
    So we have game sessions of 3-4 hours, we do three round and then resister the position of the pieces on a module made with a spreadsheet. So the next session we continue from the interruption point.
    A complete game face2face is difficult to complete in one single time it may take up to 8 hours to arrive to a decisive point.

    Try and come back to ask again!

    Have a good time with A&A!


  • The easiest thing to do - if you can - is get an Axis and Allies Revised veteran to show you the ropes.  That way, you can ask questions and get answers.

    Try putting up a sign in your local hobby store, and see if you can set up a game.

    Also a nice way to meet people.  But have the first meeting at the store, because some people can be a bit dicey.

    crack pipe lolz.


  • These vids really helped me a lot to 1st learn the game. some of the stuff he said was wrong but still very helpful.  http://www.morrisongames.com/


  • The local gaming/hobby store is a GREAT idea.

    I used to do AD&D games at the local hobby store to help find new players :-)


  • I am starting to believe we’re doing something wrong.

    Don’t feel bad, it is a really complex game that takes hours and hours to learn. When I first started we spent hours to get just 1 turn through as well! But it’s worth it! We’re rooting for you, feel free to ask any questions (well I don’t have any specific advice, just wanted to give you a pep talk  :lol:)

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