I’m a longtime player of A&A classic who recently got a chance to play A&A 1942. I liked it and bought a copy. Now I want Global 1940, but I don’t have the budget to buy the 2 games now, so I am going to use my A&A classic and 1942 sets to play Global.
I am writing to ask your advice about what I’ll need.
Those needs can be divided into 4 categories::
1. Boards and rules
2. New tokens and markers
3. new unit pieces
4. new sides
Here is what I am planning:
1. I have ordered the 1940 boards and Europe 1940 rules individually off Ebay. the Pacific 1940 rules are online, and I believe all other errata and such is online as well.
2. Tokens and markers
I will either buy them on ebay or make my own. They don’t need to be pretty.
3. There are 4 units not present in classic - destroyer, cruiser, mechanized inf., and artillery.
For cruisers and destroyers I would repaint some of the Russian and German ones from 1942, since I can’t imagine those sides use all of them. I might also get some on destroyers on ebay and reapaint classic battleships. Same for artillery for the new sides (I also have the risk artillery pieces).
For tactical bombers I will use the classic fighters, repainting some as German (black) and other colors as needed.
Mechanized infantry is more of a problem. I hope to find small plastic trucks that I can repaint. In a pinch, I’ll use tokens, or the APCs from Fortress America (which I have).
4, This gets trickier.
For the old sides, I’ll use the 1942 sets for the Russians, Germans, US, Japan, and UK. I assume that I’ll need many of the classic US, UK and Japan infantry (and maybe tanks) to supplement the 1942 pieces. For the others, I’m thinking:
Though I appreciate any comments or advice based on the above, I have the following particular questions:
1. How many ICs, air bases, naval bases, and anti-aircraft pieces does a game of Global need?
2. In Europe 1940, Pacific 1940, and esp. Global 1940 how many of each piece do the factions need? In particular, what do you tend to use a lot of/what runs out? US fighters? Japanese infantry? etc.
3. For the new, smaller sides - Italy, ANZAC, China, and France - how many of each piece do they need?
4. Are the Classic russians different enough from the new russians that they could be used as Italians and avoid Eastern Front confusion?
6. How many tactical bombers get used?
7. What am I forgetting?
8. More broadly, will this work?
Thanks,
F
No offense, but any kind of conversion, like you are talking about - is not likely to end well. Because of all the new countries, Anzac, Italy, France. New Pieces as you mentioned, and new map.
Seriously, for all the work, energy, material, and investment it is going to take you, to try and make a game of Global out of 1942 and Classic. There is a MUCH better approach.
Get a part time job for a week at McDonalds or whatever, after 15 hours of work that’s roughly $120 - enough to buy the game.
That or you could pick berries on a farm, go haying, deliver newspapers, or sell vacuums door to door or whatever, even temp in construction. There is always some kind of oppurtunity for you.
Your conversion is going to take WAY longer than 15 hours, and it won’t look as good, plus once you have this job that you don’t care about, if you like you can keep it a little longer if money is a consistent difficulty.
Even collecting bottles, or mowing lawns would be easier, than attempting this conversion.
Money is what makes the world go around.
Thanks, but:
1. If I did earn more, I wouldn’t be able to spend it on the game.
2. Why do you think it will take that much time to do this?
3. I already have boards for 1940 and have 1942, so I’m not inclined to spend another $140. Also - where can you get it for $120?
Unfortunately Foxtrot, Gargantua is pretty much right.
Gave it to you in a slightly different manner, but he’s right. You may have just been better off buying the two games. I was looking to do the same thing as you. I had Spring '42 and bought the global boards. I found the Italian pieces for a fairly good price, and can use older US pieces as China infantry, but that still leaves me needing France, ANZAC and mechs and tac bombers for every country.
I even thought about not using France and just moving the starting date back (forward?) until after the Battle of France was over, and consolidating the UK and ANZAC forces (probably should be anyway). Still, just buying the mechs and tacs for this revised game would put me at about the same cost as just buying the global game.
Another option you might want to consider is just playing the 1942 game on the 1940 board. There the hardest thing you have to figure out is converting the setup. Could still use the other countries if you want, or just the 5 main powers. You could also adapt any of the NOs, air/naval bases, convoy rules, etc. that you wanted.
Well, I appreciate (from both of you) the advice (albeit blunt). I think I’m going to go ahead for now and see how it works out. Is there anywhere I could look to get a sense of how many pieces typically get used in a game of Global?
F
No problem, if you ever figure anything out post your results.
You can check out boardgamegeek for lists of the number of units that come with the games, but the units that actually get used will depend upon player most of the time. For France, you would probaly only really need the units that are on the initial setup, plus one or two backups for each.
How badly do you really need / want the game?
There are other ways to hook you up. Send me a PM if you are a real fan.
4. Are the Classic russians different enough from the new russians that they could be used as Italians
The latest infantry sculpts for the five classic A&A nations all have varying degrees of small differences from the original ones, but in most cases you have to look really closely to tell the difference. The current Russians, for example, are armed with a submachine gun with a larger drum magazine than the originals. The current and original British pieces have a different elbow posture: one leaves an open space at the bend of the elbow while the other one doesn’t. (I don’t have my sculpts in front of me right now, so I can’t recall which version has which configuration.) Those are probably the two most visible differences…and from a distance of more than a couple of feet I don’t think they’d be noticeable. The differences in the other nationality sculpts – things like slightly different helmet shapes – are even more subtle. They’re so minor that even from close up they’re hard to see.
Wanna Loan?
I got mine from coolstuffinc for 120$
Thanks for all of the…other options folks here have been suggesting, but I am determined to make a stab at this.
By now I’ve learned what the two 1940 sets come with and I think I know what they are short of in a typical global game (UK carriers, German subs, Japanese tac bombers, Japanese mech infantry, Russian artillery). That leaves two sets of unanswered questions:
1. How compatible are colors from Classic, 1942, and some of the other intermediate sets. In particular, are old and new Japanese yellow close enough to be one side? What about Pacific (old, not 1940) Japanese yellow and 1942 Japanese yellow? How about 1940 Italy and classic Russia? Are revised German black black enough to go with 1942 German? Are grey revised German and old Europe German grey enough to go well with Classic German and not be confused with black 1942 German?
2. How many of each unit do the sides need, esp. the minor powers? Do ANZAC need more than 4 or 5 tanks? 4 or 5 fighters? Does Italy? I’ve had no luck finding such discussions using the search functions - is there anywhere that people post game reports or the like that might have that data? At least, are the numbers in the 1940 sets more than sufficient, except for the units I listed above?
Thanks,
F
1. How compatible are colors from Classic, 1942, and some of the other intermediate sets. In particular, are old and new Japanese yellow close enough to be one side? What about Pacific (old, not 1940) Japanese yellow and 1942 Japanese yellow? How about 1940 Italy and classic Russia? Are revised German black black enough to go with 1942 German? Are grey revised German and old Europe German grey enough to go well with Classic German and not be confused with black 1942 German?
For colour comparison data and pictures, see this thread:
http://www.axisandallies.org/forums/index.php?topic=21158.0
Marc - thank you very much for that link - it’s exactly what I was hoping to find.
In the long run you will find you spent almost 80% of the cost of the initail purchese anyway. save youself the aggravation and just buy it used on ebay.
Marc - thank you very much for that link - it’s exactly what I was hoping to find.
You’re welcome. One note of caution: keep in mind that, if you base some of the nationalities in your converted set on the subtle shade differences that exist for the same nominal colour in different A&A editions, you may run into difficulties if your lighting conditions change. I’ve found that some shades which are easy to tell apart under one set of lighting conditions (daylight vs. incandescent vs. fluorescent) are indistinguishable in a different illumination. The green US infantry pieces (which have been produced in many slight [and not-so-slight] shade variations) are particularly notorious in this regard because fluorescent light sometimes has a greenish tinge to it.
I’d pay the $120 just to spare you this madness.
It’s not going to work, what you are describing would is going to be an abortion.
That said…
1. Color compatibility is all dependant on what you’re willing to put up with. I wouldn’t stand for it, but you don’t seem to care, so it’s not a good question to ask. You are likely to run into problems mid game, with not being able to distinguish British, Anzac, or Japanese troops, if you are mixing old, with revised, with new. It’s not a good idea.
2. 5 of everything is a good start. You’ll learn more of what you need as you go, and you can usually make do with 5.
Give up now.
I’d pay the $120 just to spare you this madness.
It’s not going to work, what you are describing would is going to be an abortion.
That said…
1. Color compatibility is all dependant on what you’re willing to put up with. I wouldn’t stand for it, but you don’t seem to care, so it’s not a good question to ask. You are likely to run into problems mid game, with not being able to distinguish British, Anzac, or Japanese troops, if you are mixing old, with revised, with new. It’s not a good idea.
2. 5 of everything is a good start. You’ll learn more of what you need as you go, and you can usually make do with 5.
Give up now.
Hey if your buying players games…I’ll take a copy of global
You can take that $120 out of foriegn aid contributions to your country idi.
Is there a difference in the quality of the cardboard used for the ICs, bases, and roundels between the two versions?
Don’t skimp on your pieces
the little tanks and dudes are what got me and others hooked
I’d say shovel snow because it snows where I’m at
but good luck with your project
