OUCH! :?
OK, serious question;
Does anybody think that by having different classes of tanks, artillery, infantry , planes ,etc. opens up the inevitable fact that the combat system would have to be expanded to a 12d system to accommidate all these units. the 6d system seems stretched to the max to me. what do you think?
In answer to the “Isn’t the d6-based system already maxed out?” question, I have 2 comments:
1. If it does get to the point where there’s too many variations for a d6-based system, I say, fine; I’ve got plenty of d12’s that I could use. And then one could even go hog-wild and start introducing d4, d8, and d10 units… Why not? They already do it in TWG and in A&A Battle of the Bulge… MB’s Gamemaster series already did it in Shogun and in Fortress America… and I’d already started doing it in my own A&A-inspired creations even before I’d had the opportunity to fully explore all of those systems.
2. Nevertheless, I think there’s still room left in the d6 world for more possibilities than currently exist in A&A40. For instance, here’s how I would do a system that adds a couple of units without going to d12’s. This also doesn’t include other unit types whose key advantages consist chiefly in special abilities rather than these sort of pure fighting stats listed below. For instance, there could be:
Unit Attack Defense Move Cost
Infantry 1 2 1 3
Elite Infantry* 2 2 1 4
Armored Infantry 2 2 2 4
Artillery 2 3 1 5
Armor 3 2 2 5
Heavy Armor 3 3 2 6
Fighter 3 4 4 12
Tac Bomber 4 2 4 12
Bomber 2 (x2) 1 6 15
Submarine 2 1 2 8
Destroyer 2 2 3 12
Cruiser 3 3 3 18
Battleship 4 4 2 24
Superbattleship 5 5 2 30
*Elite Infantry lacks the built-in mobility of armored infantry, but would have other specialized advantages, like a bonus for amphibious landings for marines or an ability to attack by air for airborne troops.
OOps… I keep trying to get these table things to line up, but they never do. Hopefully, you can interpret the mess above and get my point.
Continuing what CWO said, I would argue against Table Tactics making infantry pieces. FMG has two different infantry units for each nation, and I think any more will be overkill.
I would focus more on actual vehicles/tanks/planes/extra unit classes. Some ideas:
Self-propelled artillery – Katyushas, M7 Priest, Wespe, etc. A good idea in the A&A universe, and a logical development to artillery.
Recon unit – Smaller tank/armored car (Hotchkiss, for example)
Escort Carrier – Smaller carrier than fullsize
My main recommendation? Focus on filling out 1939-1941 units. Your French set, by definition, will be in that period, so it would be worthwhile to have the other sets have at least 1 tank from that period (I.e., a PzII/T-26/M3). That way, you have a unit set that can be used for any 1939 scenarios or even Spanish Civil War scenarios.
I disagree on the Infantry: FMG’s two Italian Infantry are practically identical except for weapons. I’d like to see:
For Dr. Larsen:
| Unit
Infantry
Elite Infantry*
Armored Infantry
Artillery
Armor
Heavy Armor
Fighter
Tac Bomber
Bomber
Submarine
Destroyer
Cruiser
Battleship
Superbattleship | Attack
1
2
2
2
3
3
3
4
2(x2)
2
2
3
4
5 |
Defense
2
2
2
3
2
3
4
2
1
1
2
3
4
5
| Move
1
1
2
1
2
2
4
4
5
2
3
3
2
2 | Cost
3
4
4
5
5
6
12
12
15
8
12
18
24
30 |
Re: The infantry units.
Having the OOB infantry unit and 3 other types is a bit much for a game where visual identification is key.
I also think it is much harder to sculpt infantry than units (more cost for Table Tactics)
Thanks, reloader! (Is there some secret to it that I’m missing, btw?)
Back to the topic at hand: I concur that it might be more difficult. If TT thinks that this increased difficulty is a problem, then I agree that he is best focusing his efforts elsewhere, no question. Go where you have a comparitive advantage and/or a market opening, and don’t try to do what you can’t do well.
I would say, though that as long as he could do pieces at least as good as OOB A&A infantry figures, there’s still some potential here. That is, however, assuming he can match colors and sizes near perfectly, though, as I have HO’s for nearly everything I could ask for, but would still replace them in a minute for pieces that “fit” better.
Of course you’re right that visual identification is key, but here the fact that different units that would be good candidates used either different headgear or different small arms or both makes ID not too difficult, I think. Here headgear is important, because it’s easy to distinguish from a distance. Examples of distinctive headgear that could be seen on different units which may or may not be a part of FMG’s “list” include:
-Italian “Folgore” paratrooper with distinctive para helmet
-Italian “X MAS” soldier with distinctive beret
-Italian “Alpini” or “Bersiglieri” with distinctive hats
-British para’s with distinctive para helmet
-British commandos with distinctive cap
-ANZAC soldier with distinctive hat
-German “Fallschirmjager” with distinctive para helmet
-US para with distinctive helmet
It’s already fairly certain, it seems like, that FMG won’t be doing any of these Italian options. I also seem to recall that he said that his ANZAC’s would be recasts of his Brits in another color. I don’t remember what he said about Brit, German or American para’s or Brit commandos, but if FMG neglects these, I see them as opportunities.
Picked up the Japanese from the shop yesterday,
When do you think Fairplay will have them in stock?
Wow! I dug a couple of tanks from The War Game out of storage to compare and I found that the new TT pieces dwarf even them! TT’s Panther is about the size of TWG’s Tiger! TT’s Elephant is about the size of TWG’s Maus! (interesting double irony there, I guess…) Yeah, I have to say, TT: you’d best scale them down for AAA compatibility.
Yes I got my four sets of TT units yesterday and the tanks are quite large. For the most part not good for AA. Maybe can be used for BotB using ILs larger map. I made my first two bunkers out of the infantry pedestals. Cut the gun off the top and then drilled a small hole in the center of the portal that is located on the edge. Glued a portion of a gun in the drilled hole. Looks like one of those small bunkers on the Maginot line.
Check out my photo of bunker prototypes made from TT infantry units next to AA tanks.
Wow! I dug a couple of tanks from The War Game out of storage to compare and I found that the new TT pieces dwarf even them! TT’s Panther is about the size of TWG’s Tiger! TT’s Elephant is about the size of TWG’s Maus! (interesting double irony there, I guess…) Yeah, I have to say, TT: you’d best scale them down for AAA compatibility.
Photo of TT tiger1 next to The War Game tiger1 with the cross on top. Compare to the AA panther.
That War Game Tiger looks really nice. Is The War Game still available anywhere? I tried looking it up on eBay but typing in “The War Game” gave me almost 7,000 results and a lot of stuff that wasn’t even remotely related.
@Table:
Picked up the Japanese from the shop yesterday,
:| … Is that a broken/bent gun I see on the first tank? And stress marks on one of the others. :(
That War Game Tiger looks really nice. Is The War Game still available anywhere? I tried looking it up on eBay but typing in “The War Game” gave me almost 7,000 results and a lot of stuff that wasn’t even remotely related.
Try typing in “The War Game:World War II”. But remember that all the sculpts in that game are different colored German units.
That War Game Tiger looks really nice. Is The War Game still available anywhere? I tried looking it up on eBay but typing in “The War Game” gave me almost 7,000 results and a lot of stuff that wasn’t even remotely related.
Try typing in “The War Game:World War II”. But remember that all the sculpts in that game are different colored German units.
Thanks Fishmoto37. Yeah, I know they are different and not really compatible with A&A units. I guess that I’m just hooked on collecting little miniature combat pieces. You ought to see my large collection of Xeno naval pieces in about 19 different colors. I will never use them in any game but I just keep collecting them.
@Table:
Picked up the Japanese from the shop yesterday,
I WANT THEM! When are you going to have them ready to sell?
Hey Fishmoto37. Is “The War Game” made by Pegasus Hobbies? If so, I found 4 of them on eBay thanks to your tip on how to type it in. All four with shipping are over $100. Is this game out of print now? Or just hard to find? Well, I guess I will pass on this. It was more of a curiosity anyway. Thanks again for your help.
Hey Fishmoto37. Is “The War Game” made by Pegasus Hobbies? If so, I found 4 of them on eBay thanks to your tip on how to type it in. All four with shipping are over $100. Is this game out of print now? Or just hard to find? Well, I guess I will pass on this. It was more of a curiosity anyway. Thanks again for your help.
I dont think that it is hard to find. It just is hard to find at a reduced price. I found a used one about a year ago and kept a few of the pieces and sold the rest on E-Bay. The major and minor ICs are really neat for the new AAG1940.
I’ve been using the old white ICs from the MB version of A&A for minor and the newer grey ICs for major. I’ve also got a lot of the old white AA guns which I haven’t figured out a use for them yet. Maybe if someone gets the Radar technology, where AA guns hit on 2 instead of just 1, I could replace the grey guns for white guns for that country.
