How to make hidden armies…

[Imperious Leader]

To create a greater value for aircraft in this game, it would be a good idea to create army command tokens to simulate the lack of reconnaissance with no plane support.

This is basically the return of the blue naval plates they gave us in AA Pacific, except these are for armies and you don’t get to see what they are composed of unless you have a plane in combat.

Besides, the map is only 32 inches and this will introduce crowded games

[ossel]

I was going to post this elsewhere, but since we’re on the subject, I thought I’d share my idea…

It would basically be a combination of the wonderful-sounding (but no one that I know plays in my part of the U.S.) game Kriegsspiel and A&A 1914. Here’s the website if anyone is interested (http://79.170.44.85/kriegsspiel.inuk.co/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1 also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kriegsspiel_(wargame)), it’s basically a wargame invented by the Germans before the Franco-Prussian war that simulates the fog of war in tactical combat.

In a nutshell, you have 3 maps in 3 different rooms:

• A map for what Player 1 (or Alliance 1) can see
• A map for what Player 2 (or Alliance 2) can see
• A map for the omniscient umpire, who dictates what Players 1 and 2 can see.

Orders are given and reports are received that let players flesh out their maps with where they think the enemy is.

Ok, for the application in this game:

You’d have 3 boards, as outlined above. The Entente places all their units, with no visibility of where the Central Powers’ units are (likewise for the CP’s). Orders are given to each side’s units, the umpire moves the units and reports back what they see. I’d have to figure out the best way to process combat.

Certain visibility rules would have to be put into place, and enforced by the umpire.  My first stab:

-You can see units by default in contested tt’s.
-If you have a fighter in a tt, you can see units in all adjacent tt’s.
-Each nation will get spies, able to be secretly placed in enemy territory, that report (or possibly mis-report) enemy strengths in the tt they are in.

The end effect of this would be a fairly realistic fog of war…you’d have some glimpses here and there of where the enemy was moving troops, but in the end it’s the player with the best reconnaissance that will have the upper hand.

Of course, detractors will point out the difficulties: Having three games, time constraints, getting people who actually want to play this way, but I think it may be an interesting thing to try.

[BJCard]

It sounds interesting, but half the fun is talking crap to your opponents… If you are in different rooms this isn’t possible.

[ossel]

You can send them a strongly worded dispatch… :wink:

[wove100]

@BJCard:

It sounds interesting, but half the fun is talking crap to your opponents… If you are in different rooms this isn’t possible.

Perhaps telegraph style messages?

To the Kaiser STOP Will be eating sausages in Berlin before dawn STOP Ya boo to you Fritzy END

To President Poincare STOP These champagnes are excellent STOP Thanks for the loan of your heavy industry STOP Wanna give up like you did in 71 or do you still have a taste for horse meat END

[Razor]

…or just e-mail them

“Hi you loosers in the next room etc…”