Using Factories in 1914 ?

[Arreghas]

Hello everyone.

I’ve been thinking about adding factories to my 1914 game as a house rule. I was wondering what would be the most fun way to make them useful to the game.

I have so far 3 ideas :

1. Factories generate extra IPCs from a region (either a fixed amount or half the region’s value, to a minimum of 1)
2. Factories are staging areas like in other AA games, to allow production elsewhere than in the capitals
3. Factories generate a free unit per turn (say an Infantry)

I find each idea has pros and cons :

1. Extra IPCs may be a fun risk/reward strategy, but I don’t know if it would break the game for one side
2. This is a tried and true method, but it just feels boring and unimaginative. Unless you get to add just 1 for the whole game and that new staging area becomes critical.
3. This one seems to favor smaller powers more, which can be interesting but also game changing.

I would like to hear your thoughts on what you think would be the best way to go about it.

Thank you !

[CWO Marc]

The concept of wanting to add extra IPCs to a territory is certainly clear enough (there have been all sorts of house rule proposals over the years to add IPCs to various territories in various A&A games), but what puzzles me is the idea of having IPCs be generated by factories because in the real world – and indeed in A&A – factories / industrial complexes consume money and resources rather than generate them. In other words, they take the economic resources provided by the state (labour and raw materials) and convert them into manufactured goods (such a weapons). I suppose that a mine could be considered a type of industrial facility which produces raw materials, and thus generates IPCs, but the point is that mines are not factories; they don’t manufacture tanks and guns and aircraft. Similarly, factories in real life don’t produce infantry; they do manufacture infantry equipment, but such personal equipment isn’t modeled in the game. A facility which “produces” infantry, i.e. which trains raw recruits and turns them into soldiers, would be better described as a boot camp or a training facility, which could be added to the game as a specialized fixed installation – but again, it would consume IPCs rather than generating them.

[Arreghas]

@CWO-Marc

I have been thinking that some powers in the game could benefit from having “export” industries that drive their economy. It would make for more diversified game play by some of the smaller powers.

In the end, whether it’s a factory or a mine or anything else doesn’t matter so much. The idea is to give the game a bit more depth strategically and long term investments like economy or extra staging areas can be definitely game changing.

Thank you for your input !