Blog: The grand Strategy Game.

[Narvik]

@Narvik

CHINA TURN 18 - WINTER 1944

PURCHASE
KMT: 3 Inf
CCP: Inf
ROC: Inf

[Narvik]

@Narvik

UK TURN 18 - WINTER 1944

SECOND CAIRO CONFERENCE - FDR, Winston & Mustafa
-Mustafa agree to let FDR and Winston build and use Airbases in Turkey (no longer a strict neutral)

PURCHASE
UK: DD, 2 FTR, 2 BMB, 2 Inf + LL to USSR: Tank
CAN Pac: Tranny + LL to USSR: Mech
Turkey: Airbase

COMBAT

BATTLE OF BERLIN
UK: 4 BMB SBR> Ge: 4 FTR + Berlin
Loss UK: 2 BMB + Loss GE. 2 FTR + Berlin = damage

RAID ON ADRIATIC SEA
Malta 26: FTR + DD attack> sz 97: Sub (GE)
Loss GE: all units

BATTLE OF MONTE CASSINO
S. IT: Inf, Tank + FTR, TAC attack> S. IT: Blockhouse, Tank, Para, AA, 2 FTR
Loss UK: Tank, FTR + Loss GE: Blockhouse, Tank
contestet territory

[Narvik]

@Narvik

ITALY TURN 18 - WINTER 1944

Horthy (Hun) start peace talk with the Allied players.

Except from that, literally nothing

[Narvik]

@Narvik

ANZAC AND UK PAC TURN 18 - WINTER 1944

THE AFGHAN TRIBAL REVOLT START (end in january 1947)

King Zahir Shah (strict neutral Afg. player) ask earl Wavell (de facto UK Pac player) for aid.
and of course the viceroy of India can help a good neighbour.

NON-COMB MOVE
India: FTR to strict neutral Afghanistan
contestet territory: Afghan Army: 2 Inf against Rebels: 1 Inf

Now this is something you don’t see very often, even in casual games

[Narvik]

@Narvik

FRANCE TURN 18 - WINTER 1944

A very quick turn, literally nothing happened

[FranceNeedsMorePower]

@Narvik So what is this?

[Narvik]

@FranceNeedsMorePower

I believe I explained that well in the starting post, but will be happy to do it again. This is a study in how it would look if the real WWII leaders, like FDR, Churchill, Adolf, Musso, Stalin etc were casual players in a game room, playing A&A. I look into how decisions were made. When you and me play, we figure out the math, do calculations based on a D6 die. But in the real WWII it looks like decisions were based on feelings and backstabbing (not an option in A&A since you can’t change team). But not so much math.

I am awere that A&A is an abstract KISS game, based on playability and balance. A&A even has a Turn order that is missing in the real world. But A&A is in fact based on the real WWII, so it’s only logical that I made this Blog. A great A&A player had a Homepage back in the 1990’s were he compared the real WWII to the MB Classic A&A game from 1984. It was so nice and professional done, I got inspired. Now I want to do the same with A&A 1940. It’s as simple as that.

This is only the Beta 2 version. I will make a Homepage or my own Blog at some moment, more professional than this. As you propably know, in case you are a history buff, the estimats differ between the different sources and historians, some times by millions of men, and thousands of aircrafts. Making it a puzzle. What numbers are correct? Opionons differ on that. But when the history book says Germany purchased like 40 000 Fighters the last month, but only had 250 Fighters operational, then we know someting is wrong. Same with US, officially made 130 000 planes but only 1000 operational at the peak. What happened to the taxpayers money?

I know that A&A is an infantry game. The designer surely was in the infantry (82’nd Airborne is kind of infantry) I figure that is the reason A&A lack a playable naval part. A&A don’t have the Battle of the Atlantic, which was the major part of the real war, as this Blog so blatantly show. Come to mind, A&A Europe 1999 ed did in fact have convoy boxes in the Atlantic and a working game mechanic. I loved that game, best A&A game ever. This new improved “Convoy Disruption” system don’t make my day. It looks like the civilian merchant shipping is trespassing the submarines wet territory.

Another thing I learned from this project is that Fighters supported by Airfields in supply could make 4 sorties every day, compared to 1 sortie if taking off from a corn field. US B-17 and B-25 Bombers taking of from Airfields in UK could make 3 sorties to Berlin every week, and that is like every single B-17 made a total of 36 sortis during the 3 months one of my Round is. But, the same B-17 Bomber taking off from Sicily or Algeria or Egypt could only make 1 sortie every other month, because they were always out of supply. I learned 2 things from this. OOB A&A Rules limit SBR to one dice roll in each Turn. But in the real war a B-17 would keep on bombing until it was shot down or out of supply. On the contrary, an Infantry unit in the real war could only engage in combat like once in a month, but in A&A Infantry can roll unlimited number of dice in a Turn. That is not historically correct. I suggest a House Rule for that.

Anyway, hope this was helpful to your question

[FranceNeedsMorePower]

@Narvik Ah that’s a very cool project! I see you have put a lot of work into it. Keep it up! :)

[Narvik]

@FranceNeedsMorePower

Thank you, sir. Your Stalingrad video on Youtube was very cool too, so you too keep up the good work. :-)

[FranceNeedsMorePower]

@Narvik Thanks for the support! I plan on making videos of each turn, strategy, and explain rules etc. Which may not be out for a bit. Sorry for derailing your post.

[Narvik]

@Narvik

ROUND 19 - march april may 1944

GERMANY TURN 19 - SPRING 1944
THE KLESSHEIM MEETING
Adolf (GE) meet Horthy (Hun) at Schloss Klessheim in Austria.
Adolf tell Horthy to quit the peace talk with the Allies and don’t desert Germany

PURCHASE
2 Sub, 6 FTR, TAC BMB, 5 Tanks, 4 Art 16 Inf
Atlantic Wall: 1 Fort
East Wall: 1 Blockhouse
Gothic Line: 1 Blockhouse

COMBAT
OPERATION STEINBOCK
W. GE: BMB SBR> UK 10 FTR
Loss GE: all units

BATTLE OF ATLANTIC
2 Sub attack> sz 104: CV, DD
Loss GE: all units

Sub attack> sz 102: DD
Loss GE: all units

Sub attack> sz 107: DD
Loss GE: all units

NON-COMB MOVE
OPERATION MARGRETHE - OCCUPATION OF HUNGARY just to be sure Horthy comply
GE: 10 Inf to Hungary
HOLOCAUST
550 000 hungarians to camp

[Narvik]

@Narvik

USSR TURN 19 - SPRING 1944

PURCHASE
4 FTR, 4 TAC, BMB, 7 Tanks, 4 Art, 6 Inf, AA

COMBAT
Nov: 2 BMB SBR> Baltic States = total damage

VIBORG OFFENSIVE
Nov: Inf, 3 Art, 2 Tanks + FTR, 2 TAC attack> Viborg: 2 Inf, Art, FTR, AA
Loss USSR: 2 Art, 2 Tank, FTR, TAC + Loss Fin: all units

FIRST JASSY OFFENSIVE
W. Ukr: 3 Inf, 2 Art attack> Bessarabia: 3 Inf (Rom)
Ukr: 3 Inf, 2 Art attack> Bessarabia
Loss USSR: 2 Inf, Art
attacker retreat

NON-COMB MOVE
200 000 crimean tartars deported to GULAG in Usbekistan

[Narvik]

@Narvik

JAPAN TURN 19 - SPRING 1944

PURCHASE
CV, Air, Tranny, 3 FTR, TAC, BMB, 3 Inf, Art AA

COMBAT

OPERATION ICHI-GO
Anhwe: 3 Inf, 2 Art, Tank + TAC attack> Hunan: 3 Inf
Loss JAP: Inf + Loss KMT: all units

OPERATION U-GO
Burma: Inf, Art + BMB attack> India (Bengal) 10 allied Inf total
Loss JAP: all units + Loss Allies: Inf

COLLECT INCOME
CONVOY DISRUPTION
Sub in sz 6 = loss 2 IPC
Sub in sz 19 = loss 2 IPC
Sub in sz 20 = loss 2 IPC
Sub in sz 36 = loss 1 IPC
Sub in sz 35 = loss 1 IPC
Sub in sz 42 = loss 1 IPC
CV, BB, CA, DD in sz 41 = loss 4 IPC

[Narvik]

@Narvik

USA TURN 19 - SPRING 1944

PURCHASE
East: CV, Air, CA, Sub Tranny, 4 FTR, TAC, 9 BMB
LL to UK: 2 Trannies, FTR, tAC, BMB , Tank
LL to USSR: FTR, Tank

COMBAT EUROPA
BOMB CAMPAIGN
UK: 3 BMB SBR> Ge (Berlin) 3 FTR
Loss US: 2 BMB + Loss GE: 1 FTR + Berlin = damaged

UK: 2 BMB SBR> W. GE: 3 FTR + Naval Base
Loss US: BMB + Loss GE: FTR + NB = damaged

UK: 2 BMB SBR> France (Paris) FTR
Loss GE, FTR + Paris = damaged

OIL CAMPAIGN
Egypt: 2 BMB SBR> Romania (Ploesti) FTR (Rom) + Oil field
W. Ukr: FTR escort> Romania
Loss US: FTR + Loss Rom: FTR + Oil Field = total damaged

OPERATION STRANGLE
Sicily: 2 BMB + FTR escort SBR> N. IT: FTR + Factory
Loss US: BMB + Loss Ge; FTR + Factory = total damaged

THE MISHAP
Sicily: BMB SBR> Swiss city by accident (or was it a warning?)

NON-COMB MOVE
BOLERO CONVOY 2 land units to UK

[Narvik]

@Narvik

USA PART 2
General Stilwell is fired - US Airforce in China to Pacific Bases

PURCHASE
West: CV, Air, DD, Sub, Tranny, FTR, TAC, BMB

COMBAT PACIFIC

Aus: 2 BMB SBR> New Britain Airbase: FTR
Loss JAP: FTR + Airbase = damaged

OPERATION CARTWHEEL
Tranny to sz 45 + Inf, Art amp> Dutch New Guinea: 2 Inf
Loss JAP: all units

OPERATION STORM
TF 58 to sz 33:
4 cv-Air SBR> Caroline Isl: Naval Base + FTR = FTR lost + Naval Base total damage
4 cv-Air SBR> Marianas Isl: Airbase + FTR = FTR lost + Airbase total damage
4 cv-Air SBR> Palau: Airbase + FTR = FTR lost + Airbase total damage

DD attack> sz 34: Sub
Loss Jap: all units.
(This was the only Destroyer in WWII to sink 6 japanese Submarines in one week)

[Narvik]

@Narvik

CHINA TURN 19 - SPRING 1944

PURCHASE
KMT: 2 Inf
CCP: 2 Inf

[Narvik]

@Narvik

UK TURN 19 - SPRING 1944

COMMONWEALTH PRIME MINISTER CONFERENCE IN LONDON
Winston (UK), King (Can), Smuts (S.A.), Curtin (Aus) & Fraser (N.Z.)
They all agree to support the Moscow Declaration.

PURCHASE
UK: CA, Sub, 2 FTR, 2 BMB, Tank + LL to USSR: FTR
CAN: Tranny (to Pac)+ LL to USSR: Mech

COMBAT

UK: BMB SBR> Norway: Airfield = total damage

UK: 3 BMB SBR> GE (Berlin) + FTR
Loss UK: BMB + Loss GE: FTR + Berlin = damaged

OPERATION STRANGLE
Sicily: 3 BMB + 2 FTR escort SBR> N. IT: = total damage

OIL CAMPAIGN
Egypt: BMB SBR> Rom: Ploesti Oil Field = total damage

RAID ON TIRPITZ
sz 124: CV, BB, CA, 2 DD to sz 125 + cv-Air attack> sz 126: BB, DD
Loss Ge: BB damaged
attacker retreat

NON-COMB MOVE
THE GREAT ESCAPE - 76 RAF-pilots escape from STALAG LUFT III

[Narvik]

@Narvik

ITALY TURN 19 - SPRING 1944

FINLAND:
Risto Ryti resign from the game.
Mannerheim is the new player

[Narvik]

@Narvik

ANZAC & UK PAC TURN 19 - SPRING 1944

Gandhi is released from jail.

NON-COMB MOVE

THE BOMBAY EXPLOSION
A Tranny w explosive cargo blow up in Bombay Harbour and sink a lot of trannies
sz 79: Loss UK: Tranny

[Narvik]

@Narvik

FRANCE TURN 19 - SPRING 1944

Literally nothing happened