Alpha+2 Global, Europe and Pacific Setup and NO charts - FINAL.

@knp7765:

The only issue I had was with the giant ANZAC infantry units. They are a head taller than all other nations’ infantry and really look weird on the board.

Also, their round base has a larger diameter than the standard A&A infantry base, so they don’t fit in the central depression of standard A&A mini poker chips, which is a bit annoying.

The few games I campaigned through China I used the jap aa gun to try and kill that ftr.  I remember it worked at least once.  a small stack against a chinese attack that is light on arty means China will have to bring the ftr to have the punch to clear the zone.  This can work great if you are cutting the Burma road every round.

I also did air raid it the first game I played Japan too.  I just don’t think that ftr is really worth gunning for.  Now if it could leave China or attack the sz’s on the coast it would be dead meat.

I’d rather kill that ftr when its attacking than having to go in and dig it out when its rolling 4’s.

wumeng874 thanks for the effort. I didn’t have to much trouble reading your post. Your points for each power were spot on. Its really cool to communicate with people around the world that have the same interest.

Germany:
I would sea lion only if UK left London weak, and I as Germany could take it with only 4-5 transports, with out risking my entire air force. Help set up Italy, then pound Russia is a must. Try to get to the oil in the Middle east if you can. I agree that the German air force is the key, I like to have at least 15+ aircraft. As far as navy, after the first couple of rounds I tend to go to sub warfare.

Russia:
I haven’t played Russia much, but what I’ve seen is normally a defensive retreat. Make sure that you don’t get caught out of position defending your minor complexes. You need at least 35-40 infantry for Moscow at the end for a meat shield. Buy some planes.

Japan:
Tough to play, have to be decisive, but flexible (if that makes sense). Have to defeat China, take the Dutch East Indies, and keep the US in check. Building many transports is the key. Keep a steady flow of ground units pumping into Asia, and use your over powering air force as a tool on the land. Don’t let land battles go more then a round or two.

US:
As the leader of the allies (money talks :-D), TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE NEW TURN ORDER (especially in Europe). I think the US is the hardest to play, what you do will win or loose the war. As a team you must decide on a coarse of action, everyone is crying for help, and you can’t be everywhere. A weak US in to many places can be disastrous. I think your more effective when you can over power the opposition. You have to protect your ground troops, because it takes to long for them to get to the action. If you take a beach head, make sure that your allies can swoop in to defend your units. This is much easier now in Europe because of turn order (US leading the way). You should be able to get one of the French industrial complexes, or build your own in Norway to keep troop levels up.

China:
Your home nation. I’m glad to see them have a bigger role in Global 40. There is just something special about them being able to buy artillery. We don’t see it to often, but an early Japan attack on the Western Powers, or a crafty UK can make China more then just a speed bump.

UK:
As you said, must be an experienced player. Sacrifices will be made. Your normally all alone in the beginning, so be ready for a but kicking. We have come to believe that getting the Med fleet to safety, or joining it with the Indian fleet can be helpful in the long run (gives you options). Loosing the British fleets in attacks on the Italian navy just hasn’t worked out to well in our group. Defend London, and Egypt until the US arrives. Start rebuilding your fleet in Canada if you can.

Anzac:
You didn’t mention them, but they can be very helpful. They can be a distraction for Japan if they can threaten the Dutch East Indies, or can also reinforce US positions. Getting their income up really helps.

Italy:
Really depends on what you have when your turn rolls around. Can be dominate in the Med in the right circumstances for a few turns. You can earn a lot of income through NO’s depending on how things go with the UK. Gaining control of both sea entrances to the Med, and holding them is nearly impossible for long periods of time.  Trying to crack Egypt, control North Africa, and delay the US at Gibraltar is an unrelenting task. Oh yea, add the Mid East oil to to the mix, good luck.

France:
Make the most of any opportunity you get. Even if its just taking out a blocker ship for your allies, or helping defend somewhere in Africa. Hope they can liberate Paris, I like to see the “Smurfs” (blue cartoon characters) get to buy something.

Good gaming from across the globe :-)

@gamerman01:

@Dark_Destroyer:

China can ignore the Neutrality rules?  I know China is a special case but… that doesn’t seem very logical.  The rules say you can move into those 2 spots… but doesn’t say you can ignore neutrality.

UK is not neutral.  She is at war with Germany and Italy.

But United Kingdom and India are 2 different powers.  The only thing they share are Techs.  United Kingdom can actually declare war on Japan and India still be Neutral…. ?

Read it nevermind lol, Uk can’t do that.  Another Illogical thing to add :(

end note  UK split = Nonsensical, really needed to do a better job at seperating the two.  When UK falls, India can not pick up IPC from fighting in the Middle East.  Very unreasonable.

Thanks for the post, Frank.  Yep, you pretty much summed up a few of the many reasons why OOB is fatally flawed, and you have the 30-35 games to back it up.

I get the feeling from my few games of Alpha2 so far (not going too crazy playing it - just a couple games at a time because it will probably be changed anyway) that the Allies still have a significant advantage in Alpha2.  But I have to admit none of the games have lasted even more than a few rounds (with the Axis getting obliterated each time) so maybe those oil field NO’s could really come into play sometimes I suppose.

To me, Russia and USA have suffocating power (Russia is very deep, and as Larry himself acknowledged - he wondered if it was 1 territory too deep), and the UK can be very powerful as well.

Germany, Japan and Italy have to be aggressive. While also taking calculation on when to go to war with certain countries. So if you just sit and build without moving, you’re doomed.

Slacker is right, yeah its not what we all expected but its still a great game and you should be happy with Mr. Harris taking his time to help improve the game experience. yeah its a pain to check the updates but its not all that bad. i still like both the 1940 games and the way my gaming group plays, we don’t think the OOB is totally unbalanced. yeah it needed a little work but not that much. theirs my 2 cents

anyone have a link, or could maybe post a high quality (i.e. zoomable) photo of the complete map with units, or failing that a graphic of same?