Italy active on turn 1... What?

@superbattleshipyamato actually US doesnt join until turn 4.

@chris_henry also with inexperienced players - even with a bit of experience yes it does seem like the game heavily favors the entente but with a bit of luck and or good play the CP can also be dominant with OOB rules. i’ve now lost 7 games i think playing as the entente against @Ragnell804 who was able to dominate me as the CP in each of those games. he only lost one against me when we played with low luck.

@theveteran

Agreed, The Good Captain smashed me the two times we played World War 1 with him as the Central Powers.

Thanks guys! Yeah, haven’t gotten a chance to finish the game yet, but I’m definitely seeing spots where I could have done better as the CP already. I watched some of The Good Captains videos like you said, and I most definitely misplayed the CP navies right away at the very least!

@Chris_Henry

Agreed, I didn’t learn about it until after watching his videos.

@AdmirlScuttlebut

:+1:

@AdmirlScuttlebut

When I first looked at possibly getting AA 1914 and reviewed the rules online - my very FIRST thought was that Italy should be a variable entry. Referring to history, they could have gone either way! I agree with you - keep it up! My first idea was perhaps simply let Italy sit out turn 1 - then entry thereafter is based on a die roll of some sort such as 1, 2 = they go Entente (as per History) 3, 4, 5 = stay neutral that turn, and 6 = they go with Central Powers (as per their agreement before 1914).

I hope to see more on this. Gabe

@GabeNASA

I don’t think Italy would ally with the Central Powers with how things actually played out. Only neutral.

I do have a more comprehensive house rule which pretends Germany didn’t attack France and France attacked Germany, making it indisputable for Italy to join.

But yeah, dice rolls work as well.

@SuperbattleshipYamato

While I agree that there wasn’t much chance of Italy coming in with the central powers, the nations engaged in the war in 1914 could not be sure of that, and I think it would be interesting to try a game where the players are also unsure.

I like the die roll for the uncertainty it adds, but I’d be concerned to give something that could have such a big impact on the outcome of the game wholly to a die roll without first giving players an opportunity to exert some sort of influence on the outcome.

I wonder if it might be more fun to roll a die each round to see if Italy enters. If they do, the side they choose could be determined by the status of the western front. Maybe select a few territories and Italy joins whichever alliance controls the majority of them. The selected territories should be an uphill fight for Germany to get more than half of, and depending on how many territories are contested, there could be a tie, in which case Italy joins the entente.

This would not only add some uncertainty into when and how Italy comes in, but also some variation to Gemany’s strategy. A little bit more for the western front could pay back bigger than it cost you, or it could turn out to be a waste.

It’s not a terribly historical idea, but it could be pretty fun.

@PizzaPete said in Italy active on turn 1... What?:

@SuperbattleshipYamato

While I agree that there wasn’t much chance of Italy coming in with the central powers, the nations engaged in the war in 1914 could not be sure of that, and I think it would be interesting to try a game where the players are also unsure.

That’s a unique idea, and from that perspective I’m okay with dice rolls.

I wonder if it might be more fun to roll a die each round to see if Italy enters. If they do, the side they choose could be determined by the status of the western front. Maybe select a few territories and Italy joins whichever alliance controls the majority of them. The selected territories should be an uphill fight for Germany to get more than half of, and depending on how many territories are contested, there could be a tie, in which case Italy joins the entente.

I really like this. Maybe there could also be a mechanism to forestall an Italian entry into the war even if the requirements are met if Austria-Hungary either (I’m still thinking of which house rule to do):

Turn Trieste into an Italian territory (Central Powers have one turn to evacuate)

Austria-Hungary loses 2-4 IPCs (unsure of the exact number yet) per turn, representing them ceding territory to Italy.

This would not only add some uncertainty into when and how Italy comes in, but also some variation to Gemany’s strategy. A little bit more for the western front could pay back bigger than it cost you, or it could turn out to be a waste.

It’s not a terribly historical idea, but it could be pretty fun.

Agreed!

@SuperbattleshipYamato said in Italy active on turn 1... What?:

@PizzaPete said in Italy active on turn 1... What?:

@SuperbattleshipYamato
Maybe there could also be a mechanism to forestall an Italian entry into the war even if the requirements are met if Austria-Hungary either (I’m still thinking of which house rule to do):

Turn Trieste into an Italian territory (Central Powers have one turn to evacuate)

Austria-Hungary loses 2-4 IPCs (unsure of the exact number yet), representing them ceding territory to Italy.

I like that idea a lot. It would add yet another layer of choice to the central powers, and it is a good historical fit too. Between the two options, I’m leaning toward handing over Trieste, but I’d want to try both a few times and see how it plays out.

@PizzaPete

Great! 👍👍👍😄

@AdmirlScuttlebut a turn 1 invasion of Italy by AH is not a standard move by any means. I used to think so but then again CP used to lose most of the games. The standard move is for AH to crush Serbia and Romania turn 1 focusing their army towards Russia - not towards fighting Italy. It’s easier to fight defensively against the Italians in the early turns and better to focus down Russia, you’ll need the units I promise !

@PizzaPete

i think I might have confused you with GabeNASA in my comments. If this caused any confusion I apologize.