Interview with the 2021 OOB champion: AndrewAAgamer

@ShadowHAwk not sure that I would want to play a 40+ round world domination game with stalemates in so many portions of the world. I assume that bombers would become the meta, being able to project power into so many theaters and preventing your opponent’s fleet from splitting to two forces.

OOB is just fine if you are relatively new to the game and playing face-to-face with no battle calculators. Eventually someone will make a mistake or two, and the game will be quickly over. The issue is with PBEM games where you can battle calc every possible option and figure out how many fighters will be required in Moscow to shift the odds from 50% up to 90%. That gives the Axis such a big advantage as they are the aggressor during the critical first 8 turns.

In what way would taking your allies into battle even remotely slow the game?

Incorrect.  UK units may not move into or through China unless UK-ANZAC is at war with Japan.

@theROCmonster:

I recommend playing the newest alpha. The new alpha rules allow scrambling from not island airbases as well, which I believe is huge. The entire flavor of the game is changed with the new alpha rules VS out of box. Also out of Box I think UK just falls to sea lion everytime…

theROCmonster, he is playing the G40 2nd edition (recently released). The OOB rules include the the newest Alpha (nicknamed Alpha 3.9) with the couple changes Port Hardcore mentioned. I guess you could call OOB 2nd edition Alpha+4, or the final Alpha.

I would go OOB 2nd edition instead of Alpha+3.9, like kcdzim said. The changes between the two were minor compared to the changes that took place through the Alpha project (like the scramble rules from Alpha+1 allowing all airbases to scramble, but only 3 units). 1 UK inf missing in Egypt surprised many ppl thinking the game is axis bias, but like he said it probably balances the Med which is a battle with-in the war. Adding Korea to the Nap just makes sense.

What I would do is play OOB 2nd ED a few times, and decide for yourself which side has an edge (every group is different), keeping in mind that the allies have a longer learning curve and it normally takes a few games for them to figure things out. If in the first game you lose Moscow in turn 6-7, then figure out what the allies need to do to save/delay that in the next game. I would also plan for a two day game the first time LOL (2-10 hour sessions).

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/filepage/59478/excel-ipc-tracker-global-1940-alpha1-alpha2-oob

I posted them at BoardGameGeek, they are done in Excel 2007. I just hope those Alpha bonuses don’t change anymore :-D

The 2010 era  Ruleset was called Alpha, for “First Edition Global 1940”.  Extensive revisions to the setup were then made, through multiple iterations (Alpha +1, +2, +3) and the final version was then slightly modified into “Second Edition Global 1940” which was published and circulated a few years later…2012-3 I think.

Anyway, Alpha +3 was a playtest version that was circulated on the internet for improved play and was then published, so that’s what we recognize today as “G40”.  Only a few other minor map changes and rule wordings were changed.    Piece sculpts are different, artillery is very confusingly similar to flak guns, the smaller teams didn’t have their own molds just copies of the other molds.  Second Edition is far superior as a purchase, since First is obsolete.

That means that there are 3 official Rulesets (Alpha, Alpha +3 G40, G42).  You could go back and play the first edition (alpha 1), I bought in after that, so I’ve only seen the boxes, never played.  its radically different starting pieces for all teams.

Well, I have only played OOB since I bought the game. 6 games later and I don’t think the game is broke. I’ve won playing both sides. I’ve been playing A&A for year against one freind of mine. We’re quite good at. Once all the dust settle and the Alpha rules quite changing, we’ll give it a try. One twist we like to put in all versions of A&A is no new IC’s.

Yes, this is the case in Alpha +2.