Posts made by Incline

I’m one of the unfortunate bastards that missed AA50’s initial printing. With the extremely inflated price tag the game has now, it doesn’t look like I’ll be getting it until it has a second release – If it ever does.

I realize I can play via TripleA (which I’ll probably start doing), but I’d also love to have a hard copy of it as well.

Here is what I’ve figured to need so far:

1 - A full AA50 rulebook and setup sheet. [Anyone have a link?]
2 - Find a way to print/properly protect IL’s awesome AA50 map. [Kinkos?]
3 - Scavenge AA42 for most of its pieces.
4 - Use the Chinese pieces from AAP40.
5 - Use ANZAC pieces from AAP40 to substitute as Italian pieces. [Any better alternatives until AAE drops?]

Am I missing anything?

Lastly – For those of you who have done it, what’s the most efficient way to go about printing and protecting IL’s AA50 map?

Thanks in advance.  :-)

Just saw this thread for the first time – And after seeing the pictures, I’m in awe. These are absolutely incredible.

I really wish I had the patience and expertise to pull something like this off. Bravo.

I prefer to build one IC (Kwangtung), and two transports on J1, saving one IPC.

I like having three transports as Japan by turn 2 (assuming the SZ59 one gets killed) so I can continue to use the Japan IC all game long and ferry troops over into Asia, or use them on the offensive if I want to invade Alaska, make an amphibious assault on the eastern Russian territories, or whatever.

Just throwing out an idea, but how well would an Alaska IC work as a USA1 purchase?

If from every turn from then on, the USA purchased 2 subs per turn and placed them in SZ63, you could become a real pain to the IJN, and force the Japanese player to spend a lot more cash than they’d like to on fleet defense (which means less tanks on the ground in Asia) – Especially when combined with attacks from the air. And you could still focus a majority of your income in the Atlantic.

An Alaskan IC could also serve as a launching point for counter-offensives to liberate the northeastern Russian territories were the Japanese to invade, and it could also set the stage for an eventual landing on Japan itself.

I’ll have to mess around with the idea and try it in a game or two I guess. Not really sure of all the pros/cons of such a purchase at the moment.

If Germany doesn’t attack Egypt on G1, you give the UK several opportunities they would not have otherwise –  Each of which will cause serious headaches for the Axis.

Not only can they retreat the Indian fleet into the Med, and reinforce Egypt as mentioned above, but they could also opt to pull the tank and fighter off of Egypt, the fighter from the carrier, and the 2 infantry from Jordan/Persia into India and place an IC there on UK1.

There’s no possibility that Japan could take India on J1 if the UK chose to do this (India would have 5 inf, 1 tank, 2 fighters, and 1 AA gun defending it), and 3 new British tanks in Asia every UK turn (which could be used to aid Caucasus quite a bit, or to threaten Japan’s Asian territories), is something the Axis simply cannot allow.

If I’m playing as Germany, Id much rather risk losing my Med. BB and AK, opposed to giving the UK a well-defended IC in India, or a formidable Med fleet and a significantly strengthened Egypt.

I love AA42, but the one thing I really hate is how pointless and almost impossible it is for Japan to seriously threaten the States. If they don’t want to, the US doesn’t even have to bother with the Pacific, and against quality opponents there is very little Japan can do to force them to. Japan might as well just focus all efforts in Asia for the classic JTDTM.

My solution: Change the production value of the Solomon Islands from 0 to 3.

You don’t even need to raise Japan’s total IPC count. Simply take one IPC away from Borneo, one away from East Indies (dropping both territories to a IPC value of 3), and remove Okinawa’s single IPC.

This change would make the game much more dynamic and global IMO. It gives the Japanese the option to place an IC on the Solomon Islands, and seriously threaten the Western United States, thereby forcing the U.S. to play and protect the Pacific. It could be, in effect, the Japanese version of Brazil.

Not only is it perfect with the way the SZ’s are laid out (the only way to reach the WUS in one turn is through Hawaii’s SZ52, thus making Hawaii and its SZ play a much more important role to the game than it currently does), but it also increases the importance of the U.S. holding Alaska. If it were to fall to the Japanese, it could serve as a potential landing point for bombers launching from the Solomons.

Lastly, it increases the tactical value of Australia and New Zealand for the UK, which I believe would make gameplay even better.

I’ve never played AA50 or AAR, (damn me for missing the initial release AA50.  :|), but I assume that at least Revised could benefit from this change too, with the maps and setups being almost identical.

Thoughts or opinions?

@Patton5:

Other problems… against a canny opponent the UK cannot build a factory in India.  Japan has a huge fleet and troops right next door and so this old time tactic is useless.  I’m struggling to find any effective strategy for the UK in this new version of the game.

Very true. The only way that the UK can put an IC in India against a Japanese player that doesn’t want him to have one there, is if Germany doesn’t take Egypt on G1 for whatever reason.

However, if by some miracle Germany doesn’t attack Egypt on G1, an IC for India is an outstanding buy IMO. Sacrifice the Cruiser in your Pacific fleet to take out the Japanese transport in SZ59. Then on your non-combat move, move your infantry from Persia into India, take your transport and pick up the tank from Egypt and the infantry from Trans-Jordon, and drop them off in India as well. Lastly, take the fighter off of your Carrier and the fighter from Egypt, and land those in India as well.

Then retreat your carrier to whatever SZ you deem safe for future use. You can even move it through the Suez in an attempt to link it up with your Atlantic fleet if the Med is clear of German ships.

This gives you a total of 5 infantry, 1 tank, 2 fighters, and an AA gun to defend your India IC which you’ll place at the end of your turn. The maximum the Japanese will be able to attack India with on J1 is 2 infantry, 4 fighters, and 1 bomber. The chances of a Jap victory are almost non-existent (around a 10% likelihood I believe), and even if they do, you will have completely decimated their entire air force.

Combine the well-defended India IC with an American IC in Sinkiang which is supported by a garrison of 4 Russian troops, and you have a good starting point to your JTDTM defense.

I’ve yet to have a Japanese player even attempt an attack on India on their first turn when I use this strategy. Yes, you’ll be sacrificing a cruiser and a transport….But you’re eliminating a Japanese transport, and establishing a firm grasp in Asia with an IC in India and a large force to defend it.

Now obviously you leave Africa open for an attack which the Germans will no doubt take advantage of on their second turn, but I usually remedy this by purchasing a South Africa IC a turn or two later. Pump out a few tanks in Africa in addition to the three you’re putting in India each turn, and you’re golden.

If anyone ever wants to play a game of AA42, hit me up. I’d love to play via TripleA, or just play by forum (which I’ve never done, but I’m sure I could learn quickly).

Thanks for the responses, guys. Appreciate the help!

Just went ahead and ordered AAP40 from Amazon. Looking forward to getting it.

I’m definitely gonna try and get into playing both AA42 and AAP40 online. What’s the standard in the community when it comes to playing the games online? Do the majority of you prefer playing by forum, playing by email (both of which are still somewhat confusing to me, but I’m sure I’ll learn with time), or TripleA? I’ve also heard about ABattlemap….What’s the general consensus on the best way to play?

I’ve lurked around here for quite some time now, but figured I’d finally sign up and start posting.

First, just a little about me – I’m an 18-year-old strategy game fanatic and WWII history nut. Been playing Axis & Allies (the classic version) for just over a decade now. My dad and a few of his friends got me started on it when I was 7, and I’ve been hooked ever since. Up until a month ago, I had only played the classic version of A&A, and I had ended up giving my old A&A board to a friend of mine a year ago during a long-distance move. Unfortunately I had missed the first release of A&A 50, and not being able to justify a $450 board game purchase, I decided to get the 1942 version. I love it, besides the obvious lack of IPC’s (we usually end up using Monopoly money, which works just fine lol), and annoyingly small board.

Here are my questions:

1 - How exactly does playing by forum work? I would love to be able to play against people online. As it stands now, I play maybe once every several of months with a few friends – But at a glance, the whole “playing by forum” thing seems extremely complicated. Could someone explain the ins and outs of it to me?

Is it better/more common to play by forum, or to use TripleA (which I’ve downloaded, but haven’t played yet) to find and play online opponents?

2 - What other A&A games are worth getting? Is there a plan for another release of A&A 50? The thought of Asia being completely revamped, China having its own pieces, and a 3rd Axis faction sounds like it would be a blast – But there’s no way I can afford to spend the amount of cash necessary to get it via Ebay or w/e.

3 - Lastly, having heard about how you can combine Pacific 1940 and Europe 1940 to create one enourmous game, I’m definitely planning on ordering Pacific here in the next couple of weeks and then Europe whenever it comes out. For those of you who have played A&A Pacific 1940 already, is it worth getting?

Thanks in advance, and my apologies for the lengthy post. Looking forward to being a part of the community here.  :-)