Well “back in my day”, growing up as a teen/young-adult in the 1980s, we didn’t have much in the way of computer games. Back then every game was a board game of some type for the most part, and while I did play extensively the more “grognard” hard-core board wargames like just about everything from Avalon Hill and SPI, and Axis and Allies was just another game I got into in my youth which was simpler to play with my friends. There was always something “beer and pretzels” about Axis and Allies back in the 1980s that to this day still attracts me to the game. I’ve recollected (is that a word) and customized my current 2nd-Edition version of the game, and spent quite a bit on extra units, printed game-boards and the like… all with few people to play against, but it’s part game, part collectible, and its fun either way.
Looking to start Axis and Allies…
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Hello everyone, I was wondering if someone can explain a bit about Axis and Allies to me. I’m looking to start Axis and Allies, though I’m not sure which version yet, and I have a few questions. Specifically, I’m wanting to know what you would need to start playing, do you just get the boardgame that comes in the box, and you’re ready to play, or do you need anything else? Also, how much it would cost to start playing would be greatly appreciated. I’m also wanting to know what the differences are between the different versions of Axis and Allies, I know that some of them are based around specific battles, but beyond that, I don’t know much. For my last question, I was wondering what some of the most popular versions are.
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Welcome to the forum!
You can play each of the A&A games with the components in the box - everything is there and you don’t need anything else. Several people who are active on these boards have created some wonderful additional playing aids that look very pretty and can come in quite handy, but the games are also perfectly playable as they are.
As to the different versions - there are global variants that cover the entire war, there are variants dedicated to the European or the Pacific theater, and there are specific scenarios such as D-Day, Guadalcanal, and Battle of the Bulge. Each comes as a complete game with it’s own map, units, and rules.
I recommend trying the most common global version, which is A&A Spring 1942 and comes at a price of about 30 euros or dollars, depending on where you live and where you can buy it. The global game is the “main” line of A&A, and it has gradually been altered (and improved imho) over the years - some of the older variants are in fact predecessors to Spring 1942. -
Thanks, it’s nice to know that it’s a relatively cheap game, compared to a lot of the other board games that I’ve heard of. Are the rules relatively easy to learn?
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Yes, the rules are pretty easy in the $30 version mentioned, and if you enjoy that and get to know those rules - then the larger global version is easy as well. I don’t suggest starting with the global version.
I believe you can look through the rules as a PDF… anyone have that link handy?
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Johnny Mnemonic scanned it for us: http://www.axisandallies.org/forums/index.php?topic=16910.
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