Posts made by knp7765

Hey moralecheck,
I finally got around to trying A&A Europe with Italy placed between Russia and Britain.  I haven’t actually finished the game, but it’s about 5-6 rounds in and the Allies really seem to be winning this one.  The US has taken France, the Allies totally rule the Atlantic, the Italian Navy just got whacked and Russia is building steam on the Eastern Front.  Plus, the US and Britain have strong invasion forces ready to go on England and their transports are out of range of the Luftwaffe, or what’s left of it.  I figure another 3-4 rounds max and the Axis will be finished.

However, I don’t think this has to do with the turn setup.  Rather some pretty decent strategy on the Allies side and a few rather unlucky dice rolls for the Axis (particularly on the Eastern Front).

As for placing Italy after Russia in turn order, I don’t think it really made much difference in the overall Axis gameplan.  With this game, Italy is not really affected by Russia and mostly tangles with British forces, although I did manage to send a few Russian units to back up the British in North Africa.  Also, except for the island of Crete and Morocco, Germany really has no presence anywhere in the Mediterranean and they spend their time duking it out with Russia while trying to keep the British at bay.

My next idea would be to put Italy after England and before the USA.  With England getting the chance to move first in North Africa and the Med, that would probably drastically change Italian strategy.  I don’t know when I will get to try this though since AAE40 is released now and my copies from FMG are already with UPS and on their way here.  So, I’m going to be busy with that for a while, not to mention trying out the massive Global game.

By the way, that is another interesting idea you had about Germany and Italy sharing a portion of their IPCs.  Italy could sure use that since even starting with 10 it is not much to build forces with.  Their only advantage is that it is hard for Britain to get more troops and equipment down there.  It seems to me though that Germany has too much trouble with Russia and needs ALL of their money to fight that battle.

By the way, if Germany does get 2 tanks rather than 1 tank and 1 SPA, I would prefer the Tiger tank as well.

Hey moralecheck,
Thanks for the correction on the 75mm.  Like I said, I’m not really up on the different artillery pieces.  I do agree with you that we should have an artillery piece that is a “true” artillery and not an anti-tank or anti-aircraft gun.

The reason I picked the Hummel was because I thought that’s how FMG was going to make the two different armor sculpts for each country:  1 tank and 1 self-propelled artillery.  Or was that just the case for Italy because they didn’t have a large tank selection?

I didn’t realize the WOTC cruiser was the Admiral Hipper class.  They didn’t say in the rulebook and it looks different from my War At Sea Admiral Hipper and Prinz Eugen cruisers.  It was by using my WAS pieces that I figured out the British cruiser was the County Class.

Well, in that case, maybe the FMG German Cruiser could be one of the Deutschland Class Pocket Battleships (Graf Spee, Deutschland/Lutzow, Admiral Scheer).  Those could be considered heavy cruisers I think.

Hey Stephano1189,
“British units “screaming like girls” swimming from Dunkirk”?

Hee, hee, hee, hee.  That’s funny.  It puts a picture in my mind of grown British men in little flowery dresses and braids in their hair running around, flailing their arms and shrieking “EEK!  The Panzers are coming! EEEEK!”

I forgot to list any of my ideas for possible German pieces.  With each piece, I will list what WOTC already makes then what I would like to see FMG make.

Artillery
WOTC:  88mm flak
FMG:  75mm PAK 38 or maybe Nebelwerfer ( I know the 75mm is really more of an anti-tank gun then true artillery.  Afraid I’m not up on artillery pieces)

Mech Infantry
WOTC:  SdKfz 251
FMG:  SdKfz 250  (I like the 251 but if you want something different, here it is)

Truck
WOTC:  Opel Blitz
FMG:  Opel Blitz  (Sorry, I can’t improve on that one)

Tank
WOTC:  Panther
FMG #1:  Panzer III (already decided on YAY)
FMG #2:  Hummel

Fighter
WOTC:  Me109
FMG:  Fw190

Tac Bomber
WOTC:  Ju 87 Stuka
FMG:  Me 110

Strategic Bomber
WOTC:  Ju 88
FMG:  He 111

Aircraft Carrier
WOTC:  Graf Zepplin
FMG:  Graf Zepplin (The Germans didn’t HAVE another Aircraft Carrier)

Battleship
WOTC:  Bismarck (This is what I prefer but in the interest of a different choice)
FMG:  Scharnhorst

Cruiser
WOTC:  ???
FMG:  Admiral Hipper class

Destroyer
WOTC:  Friedrich Eckholt class
FMG:  1936-Type (Z20 Karl Galster, Z18 Hans Ludemann are two from my War at Sea set)

Submarine
WOTC:  Type VII
FMG:  Type IX (These were larger, ocean going subs but there were fewer of them)

Transport
WOTC:  Danzig class
FMG:  Dithmarschen class

Well, that’s all I got for now.  Like 'em?  Hate 'em?  I’m curious to find out.

@FieldMarshalGames:

@knp7765:

I still think the Panzer III is the better choice.  The Panzer IV is too close to the Panther (both had 75mm guns) which is already in the WOTC inventory and the Panzer II is too light.

We are using the Panzer III as one of the Tanks.  It was the most common light/medium tank in their arsenal.  It is already being sculpted and we will present these Sculpts soon, just like we did with ITALY.

YAY!!!

@Johnson73:

How are the pieces going to be Sold?  Are they going to be Packaged by Country?  I would perfer packaged by Catagory.  Or both.  Discount if you buy the Whole Country, however if you would like to order by Catagory, then a person can purchase Trucks (which you will receive Trucks for all countrys) or Air Transports.  I am sure there are some of us out their who do not need anymore INF, Fighters or Artillary.

As everyone else I to am excited for the finished product and will purchase them no matter how you package them.

Actually, that would be a really cool idea if you could get all the different trucks, or all the different tanks, or all the different Tac bombers in one set.  I agree that it seems like we drown in infantry yet don’t get enough of some other units.  Still, like reloader said, it would be a lot of work to keep track of all the different kinds of sets.  It may also be cost prohibitive since I believe they way FMG gets the pieces is by country.  So, if they sold sets of just certain unit types, they might end up with a ton of other types that people don’t want or just have too much of already.  So they end up running out of tanks but are up to their ears in artillery.

Thanks for clearing that up reloader.  I also remember reading that it had drivers for either direction.  Plus, as far as I’m concerned, it looks cooler the way it is.

As for the rest of you guys:  QUIT TRYING TO DELAY THE PIECES!!!  We have all waited long enough already.

That idea of a vinyl world map sounds great.  I bet it would be a lot easier to carry around and store than all of the different game boards for the new AA Global 1940.  It would probably be easier to play on too since you wouldn’t have the cracks where the boards join or the folds in the boards themselves.  Only problem I could see is getting it to lay flat.  I assume something like that would come in a roll, right?

By the way, I guess I’m not as into gaming as a lot of these guys are.  What is a "BoardGameGeek Microbadge?

@FieldMarshalGames:

@knp7765:

Does anybody know how FMG will be shipping the Italian combat units?  Will they be loose in bags like in the A&A games or will they be on sprues like the pieces you get from Table Tactics?

They will all be separated, and in a Newly designed FMG Felt bag for each Nation.  We use a different and more advanced/expensive production technique than both WOTC and TT.

That is VERY cool.  It’s a PITA clipping pieces from those sprues.  I like the sounds of those new felt bags too.  Looking forward to seeing them.  Thanks so much FMG.  You’re the best.

Does anybody know how FMG will be shipping the Italian combat units?  Will they be loose in bags like in the A&A games or will they be on sprues like the pieces you get from Table Tactics?

@Table:

@knp7765:

I’m a bit late to this thread but let me see if I got this right:  The plan is to make the next four countries – Hungary, Japan, France, Russia – with the tanks smaller to fit with the A&A pieces.  Then, assuming sales are good and all goes well, TT is going to go back and re-size the first four countries – America, Britain, Germany, Italy – to fit closer to A&A pieces?  Is that correct?  If so, what are you going to do with all the bigger pieces you’ve already made?

The Japanese and Russian tanks will be in the same scale as the first 4.  The Japanese should shoot parts on Monday and the Russian units in about 3 weeks.
Now the debate is if I should make the French smaller.  It really comes down to dollars.  If I have the dollars to redo the other country tanks it makes sense to but if I don’t have the dollars then changing one country does not make sense.  Hungary is going last so I should know before making them what will be the direction.
If the Venture Capital comes in then I can use the bigger tank molds in a complete game and cut new tools for you A&A folks.

Ah yes, it all depends on obtaining the capital to continue moving forward.  That’s a cool idea for coming out with a new game to accomodate the larger tanks.

I think reloader is right though.  Since you haven’t yet made the French or Hungarians, you should make them small as to be compatible with A&A tanks and you will have a better sale of those sets.  I know there are lots of people that play other games, but I’m pretty sure the majority are into A&A and would like to use your new tanks to replace the “Soviet” French pieces in AAE40.  I bet if your French tanks match the current A&A size tanks, you will sell a lot of French units.

I still think the Panzer III is the better choice.  The Panzer IV is too close to the Panther (both had 75mm guns) which is already in the WOTC inventory and the Panzer II is too light.

@Imperious:

Israel does not exist before 1945, but you drew it in. Check out a map for this period for corrections.

The country of Israel didn’t exist but the territory was there back then.  It was called Palestine pre 1945.

I’m a bit late to this thread but let me see if I got this right:  The plan is to make the next four countries – Hungary, Japan, France, Russia – with the tanks smaller to fit with the A&A pieces.  Then, assuming sales are good and all goes well, TT is going to go back and re-size the first four countries – America, Britain, Germany, Italy – to fit closer to A&A pieces?  Is that correct?  If so, what are you going to do with all the bigger pieces you’ve already made?

@moralecheck:

@knp7765:

Yeah, I know that Tunisia was historically controlled by the Vichy French/Germans.  In fact, if you want to get technical about it, the Italians didn’t really control Yugoslavia or Greece either.  It was Germany that invaded both those countries before Operation Barbarossa.  However, I needed a way to give Italy 10 IPCs so I chose those territories for Italy because I figured they were the closest to being historically accurate as I could.  In the Anniversary Game, it has Italy controlling the Balkans territory which is basically Yugoslavia and Greece and Tunisia doesn’t even show up on the map at all.

Also, going by the setup chart, there are NO Axis units at all in Libya, but there is an infantry, an artillery and a tank in Tunisia.  I wanted those to be Italian.  I guess I could have changed the setup and put those units in Libya and left Tunisia under German control with Italy only getting 9 IPCs, but I just didn’t think of that at the time.

I actually tried this as well, with Italy getting 9. I also allowed land movement from Sicily to Southern Italy and gave the Italians one inf on Sicily, with UK getting one inf on Malta to balance it.  However, those were the only changes I did, meaning Germany and Italy took their turns at the same time so, for example, they could use each others transports as their own.  I did this to minimize the impact on the game.  So the only real change was that the Axis is forced to spend it’s money at both factories, much like how the UK is handled in AAG40.  In order to maintain the balance of the game, if Italy loses it’s capital their on hand IPC’s are transfered to Germany, not the allied power.  If the Allies take Germany the German IPCs do go to the Allied power (but Italy keeps it’s own IPCS).  The real purpose of my variant was just to allow a fifth player without messing up the game as is.

I made the Sicily change as every other wargame on the market does that (the land movement thing). The british infantry was added in Malta also because adding one there was such a standard move with the bonus IPCs that it probably should have been there in the first place.

You are right about Germany having captured the balkans after Italy’s failure to do so themselves, but after that they got to Italy handle the occupation for the most part. So giving Italy the IPC’s seems fair.

EDIT: Forgot to add, during the collect income phase, Germany can give Italy up to 3 IPCS.

That’s and interesting way of doing things.  I also put Italy right after Germany in turn order.  It seemed to me that  gave the Axis too much of an advantage.  They pretty much trounced the Allies.  I want to try a version with the turn order Germany, Russia, Italy, UK and USA to see if there is any difference.  I haven’t gotten around to trying that out yet.

Yeah, I know that Tunisia was historically controlled by the Vichy French/Germans.  In fact, if you want to get technical about it, the Italians didn’t really control Yugoslavia or Greece either.  It was Germany that invaded both those countries before Operation Barbarossa.  However, I needed a way to give Italy 10 IPCs so I chose those territories for Italy because I figured they were the closest to being historically accurate as I could.  In the Anniversary Game, it has Italy controlling the Balkans territory which is basically Yugoslavia and Greece and Tunisia doesn’t even show up on the map at all.

Also, going by the setup chart, there are NO Axis units at all in Libya, but there is an infantry, an artillery and a tank in Tunisia.  I wanted those to be Italian.  I guess I could have changed the setup and put those units in Libya and left Tunisia under German control with Italy only getting 9 IPCs, but I just didn’t think of that at the time.

Yeah, I know he has them a little pricey.  I mainly mentioned it because of the Central Powers stuff he was offering.  Fairplay Games seems to be out of those.

HEY FMG!
Did you get the production samples yet?  What about the France and ANZAC combat dice?  We’re going crazy waiting to see them and place our orders.

By the way, do you have a prototype pic of the submarine?  We never got to see that unit.  Or are you just going to wait on that one until you get the production pieces?

Hey guys.  I know this is a little late getting to you but there is a guy on eBay selling a lot of Table Tactics stuff if you are interested.  His eBay ID is “randyjohnwayne”.  If you do and advanced search you can look up stuff by member ID.  Some of it is Central Powers stuff but I think most of it is the more modern weapons.  He’s even trying to sell sets of these new 2010 pieces.

UGH!  I know just what you mean Lozmoid.  I have just been itching to get at these Italian pieces and I’ve got money in my Paypal account just for this project and it’s burning a hole in my computer screen.  Now it’s like we know they are ready for production and it’s in the final phases, plus the new combat dice, and I can’t help but say “C’MON!  Where is our order page?  I want to order my Italians and combat dice!”

Well, I’m sure Jeremy is as anxious to get this going as we are.  Should be any day now.

Also looking forward to getting my copies of AAE 40.  I haven’t seen the pieces yet but I’ve heard talk of some dissappointment – ie:  blue Russian pieces for France and brown Russian pieces for Italy?  Well, I still want to check out the game.  Plus, before too long, we will be able to substitute the great FMG pieces.