A Beginners Guide to A&A Global 1940 2nd Edition

@MM1940

Well done!

As Russia, you will invariably be the target of a massive German attack early on in the game. If this attack succeeds, the Axis will almost surely win. If it fails, you can destroy Germany with the other Allies. Therefore, a bit of preparation for the onslaught is required. But how to prepare?

Purchasing for the Defense

In the start of the game, you have four Industrial Complexes: in Moscow, Leningrad, Ukraine, and Stalingrad. You also have 37 IPCs to spend. But on what? I think the best purchase is six tanks, split between Novgorod and Ukraine, with a tactical bomber or artillery every now and then. This provides for lots of power on offense, while also providing lots of units for defense. However, this combination is missing a few notable things:

#1: Strategic bombers. They’re a complete waste of I.P.C.s. For a start, you are going to be defending for the early part of the campaign, so having units that defend on a 1 is useless.

#2: Infantry/Mechanized Infantry. You already have enough infantry, and for the early stages of the defense, you don’t need any more. Use what you have as cannon fodder, and once the German blows have fallen, build some in Moscow or Stalingrad.

#3: Fighters. Although they do defend on a 4, they are too expensive to be worth it. The only time that you should build fighters during this early stage is for a last-ditch defense of a Victory City.

#4: Any naval units whatsoever. You will not see hide nor hair of the German navy during this stage of the war, and probably never! An amphibious assault against Leningrad is unlikely, but in any event, if you follow the strategy given below, Leningrad will be so well-defended that an amphibious assault is unlikely.

#5: AA guns. You start the game with a good number, and what you do have will likely be enough. You have enough in Leningrad, and the AA guns in Moscow (out of reach even of strat bombers for several turns), can reach the Ukraine in 2 turns. Also, the two AA guns in Buryatia can move towards the front, but they’ll not likely reach it in time.

In sum, tanks are the best all-round purchase for your defense. However, there is a strategy that you should employ to help soften the blows…

Retreating

This strategy will not miraculously prevent a German breakthrough, but it will buy you a good bit of time. Here it is:

Move your forces in Karelia and Vyborg into Novgorod, minus one infantry in each. Move one of your Bessarabia infantry into Western Ukraine. Move one of your Eastern Poland infantry into Belarus, and move two of your Baltic States infantry into Belarus. Also, move all of your forces in Volgograd and Rostov into Ukraine. What have you gained by doing this? You’ve created a buffer zone that Germany cannot blitz through, or move its aircraft into. If the Germans attack these territories, you can counter-attack next turn, while still building more tanks in Ukraine and Leningrad. This may not be enough to save Leningrad and Ukraine, but it will buy you a fair amount of time to evacuate or build up in those territories. In spite of this, a G1 attack will upset many of these plans.

Defending Against a G1 Attack

A G1 attack is dangerous, but not fatal. Your biggest advantage is the dice. Germany cannot make up losses as easily as you, as you have two ICs right at the front, and another two safely behind your own lines. Germany, by contrast, cannot reach Bessarabia with land units at all, and reaching Eastern Poland/Baltic States uses up a tank/artillery’s full movement. The only potential IC site- Finland- won’t be ready until G2. However, the Germans will have 49 IPCs on hand on G2, while you’ll only have 35. Still, you can buy 3 tanks in Leningrad and 2 in Ukraine, plus an artillery in Ukraine. This should tie down the Germans for a good while. In the center, retreat wherever possible. Move your Belarus units (assuming an air attack hasn’t killed them) into Smolensk. There, they can link up with your Moscow units and defend effectively, right next to a major IC. The units in Rostov can also support Ukraine. In Western Ukraine, evacuate your infantry and artillery to Bryansk, where they can be supported by the IC in Moscow. This will buy you some time to conduct a defensive campaign, but the Germans may still get to a territory bordering Moscow. How to defend your capital will be the subject of the next installment…

Exactly, knp.  Someone once asked me why I bothered to DOW Japan as France.  On rare occasions it has proven useful as a blocker.  Why give up something from your bag of tricks out of laziness?

@AndrewAAGamer:

Our gaming group has come to the conclusion that some bid is needed to balance the game for the Allies.  In reading through the posts it seems to me that the general consensus is that the Allies need a bid of about 9-12.

My questions are:

Is a bid of 9-12 the current and reasonable amount?  As we will not want to bid for a particular side, we will set a certain bid point for each game and then let people choose which side they want to be as some Players enjoy playing particular Powers.  So what is a fair bid?

My group usually goes 10-15, some where in the ball park of 8 to 14 is what everyone does.

Is this bid added as starting income to be spent on Turn 1?

What Siparo said.

Is this bid added as units and money such as the Revised FIDA bid?

Never played revised, and what is FIDA?  Another government agency?

Is this bid added as units on the board with remainders as starting money?

Siparo doesn’t do it, but my group allows it.

For any units placed on the board are there any restrictions?  For example:
     a) Must have a unit already in the territory / sea zone?
     b) May not place more than X number of units?

My group has 3 rules:
1.  Must be one unit per territory/seazone.
2.  Can only be placed in a territory/seazone where you already have units occupying it.
3.  Can only be a unit that power has access to (china can be inf and art only).

I would appreciate your kind thoughts and comments.  Thank you…

You’ll need a dd G1 or G2 if you want to attack G3.

Normandy G1 is not part of my Sealion plan, especially when you won’t be able to swing the 10 tt cause you’ll need to buy a dd.

Think about Scotland landings on G2 and G3.  To do this safely, occasionally additional AC or dd purchases are necessary.

Don’t stake everything on a G3 landing with less than 90% odds.  You can land Scotland and take it G4.

So why dont’t we got the Russian Bomber ? I sure could use it, would have given Russia more options. I dont care about the UK inf in Egypt, but no Russian Bomber makes me sad. Now I have to buy it turn 1, what a waste man

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.

You misunderstand my post - there are only ever four powers, with the neutrals acting just like OOB, but with different alignments.

It really should be:

1939- June 1941 Four Power game (Allies[UK & F], Axis[G & I], USSR, Japan)

Becomes three power game after June 1941 (i.e. USSR joins the Allies)

Becomes two power game after December 1941 (Japan joins the Axis)

It’s reasonable to assume that the USA only ever joins the Allies, and that (before June 1940) Italy only ever joins the Axis.  The position of China is tricky, since we don’t want to exclude the possibility of an Allied/Japanese alliance, but where does that leave China - a neutral that the other powers (i.e. not Japan) can send aid to without it being a DOW on Japan?