Is there a world champion for this game?

[SuperbattleshipYamato]

I think about how chess has an overall world champion.

Is that the case for Axis and Allies? I ask about Global 1940 specifically but I’d also like to know about world champions for the other games.

And if there is one, have they ever been beaten by an AI yet?

[General 6 Stars]

Gargantua

[phd_angel]

Gary at Board Game Nation just won the 2023 A&A “World Championship” at GenCon.

Though “world” sounds a bit too lofty (local guys playing just 4 matches in OK), it was sponsored by Renegade, so I guess this was legit.

You can check his excellent game reviews on his YouTube channel Board Game Nation.

[SuperbattleshipYamato]

@phd_angel

Impressive. I’ll take you word for it. Thank you!

[Nuts]

Maybe we should have a large set of preliminary tournaments in cities around the globe, with the winners of each facing their next closest winner and so on until there is only one player left. Good luck getting it televised, though.

[SuperbattleshipYamato]

@Nuts

Good idea!

[Nuts]

@SuperbattleshipYamato I mean, it could happen. But there are three reasons it most likely won’t.

1. Hasbro is too cheap. Does this even require explanation?
2. Players don’t always agree on rules. After all, there are all kinds of house rules, optionals, and third party dice/pieces. I suppose ther could be multiple categories you could compete in, but that leads into my third point.
3. It costs too much. Even if Hasbro let it happen and players magically agreed, the cost would drive both parties the way of my username. Would you pay 100 bucks to enter after driving 50 or more miles? That only makes sense for people who live in the inner city.

[SuperbattleshipYamato]

@Nuts

Yeah. I wonder how chess does it?

[Nuts]

@SuperbattleshipYamato They have rich donations contributed by wealthy benefactors, so the chess players are a good deal wealthier. Also, chess is ancient, so it’s very well known and popular. The rules have been written down for hundreds of years. So I imagine it has something to do with that.

[SuperbattleshipYamato]

@Nuts

Let’s hope Bill Gates picks up Axis and Allies then. Thank you for clarifying.

[Nuts]

@SuperbattleshipYamato That’s just what I think. Also, my idea was stolen from the Nintendo world championship, the first esports event. Maybe I’m wrong and Hasbro\Renegade would devote resources. I was just looking at it by way of having been a Nerf fan. I watched the devolution of well built, quality products into clipped together, faulty hunks of plastic. I know that it’s not the way our franchise is immediately headed, but things can change quickly; like when Renegade got us a new game after years of reprints and poor management and zombies. Plus, the fan base is passionate. Perhaps we could bond together. After all, we do here! But we’d need to find players willing to contribute money and time to the cause.

[shadowhawk]

@SuperbattleshipYamato said in Is there a world champion for this game?:

I think about how chess has an overall world champion.

Is that the case for Axis and Allies? I ask about Global 1940 specifically but I’d also like to know about world champions for the other games.

And if there is one, have they ever been beaten by an AI yet?

Dont think there are real world championships. More local groups that play the game.
But its as much a game of luck as a game of skill and since it takes a long time to play its not a spectator sports.
Nobody watching the games = no sponsors.

Its not a game of skill like chess that is also really old and well known. Axis&Allies is a pretty small obscure brand. We here on the board are biased as we love the game and know players for it but there are not that many around.

[Nuts]

@shadowhawk I think it absolutely is a game of skill. Otherwise, it would be a game of luck, which it partially is due to the dice. But mostly, it takes strategy.

[shadowhawk]

@Nuts said in Is there a world champion for this game?:

@shadowhawk I think it absolutely is a game of skill. Otherwise, it would be a game of luck, which it partially is due to the dice. But mostly, it takes strategy.

It takes both, some battles you can have bad luck and recover, others if you get diced you lose the game.
Especialy naval battles if your opponent gambles and wins your screwed because the costs of the fleet.
Ofcourse if you make 2 many mistakes you also lose even with good dice, but bad dice can make a difference in every game regardless or skill.

[SuperbattleshipYamato]

@shadowhawk

That’s why Iike low luck. More predictable. Perhaps that would be the way to go for a hypothetical world championship.

[shadowhawk]

@SuperbattleshipYamato said in Is there a world champion for this game?:

@shadowhawk

That’s why Iike low luck. More predictable. Perhaps that would be the way to go for a hypothetical world championship.

True but then that does not test a players skill to addapt to changing situations.
If all combat is pre-determined you never have unplanned situations.

[Nuts]

@shadowhawk I’m with you here. Low luck takes out all ability to have unplanned combat and surprise the enemy.

[vodot]

@shadowhawk I think categorizing A&A as “as much a game of luck as a game of skill” is selling the system short, especially at the highest levels of play that you’re discussing here. It’s possible to lose because of bad dice, of course, but swingy-outcomes decrease with sample size, and so the “luck” factor in A&A decreases when:

• skill level is high and therefore battles are more often one-sided
• experience level is high and therefore odds calculations and expectations are much more accurate (this is more about ‘perceived’ luck)
• battles are larger (more rolls = less swing)
• within each game as the battles pile up
• over the course of a whole tournament where multiple games are played

Gary’s videos that @phd_angel linked above are great examples of all of these factors.

While there will always be cases of great players knocked out early in a tournament due to bad dice, this will still usually require being matched up with a similarly skilled player getting good dice, because it will require a skilled player to capitalize quickly on those advantages before the good player can adjust.

I think players with differing skill levels will be sorted out over the course of any tournament involving multiple games & rounds, especially if isn’t single elimination (like this year’s world championships at Gen Con). Requiring players to play two games (one from each side) with identical bids can be a good way to mitigate the effects of luck. In any tournament, whether it’s chess or ping pong, you’ll see a great team or two knocked out early and a mediocre team or two going father than they should on paper… but if you look at quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals you’ll almost always find highly skilled teams duking it out.

[SuperbattleshipYamato]

@vodot

Agreed.

[Nuts]

@vodot That is absolutely true. Perhaps the idea of an international tournament with a world champion isn’t so far fetched. Though there should probably be a prize pool and pay to enter. Maybe a full set of every A&A game released or the title of head playtester for new games. Also, I imagine a tournament every 4 years would make sense, as it would give time for practice.